To Follow Beyond The Grave
by The23rdDragon
Summary: Cynder and Malefore lead the Skylanders together. Save the day and get out before the fans show up. Easy. Save the world from being conquered by a child with a tantrum and a giant robot? Did it. Protect the new Guardian of Fire from that same child and enemies from a past they can't remember? While meeting a famous hermit author who knows way more than he should? Here we go again.
1. Chapter 1: There

_3,000 years ago..._

Cold.

He never thought death would be so cold.

Wait a minute... He was supposed to be dead! Memories came rushing back to him in one colossal wave. The swamp, the temple, Warfang, the Guardians, Malefor, the purple dragon, the fate of the world, his elements (thankfully, they were still there, he doesn't think he could do that again.), Sparx, Cyrill, Terrador, Volteer...

Ignites.

The grief was like a punch to the gut as his heart bled for his mentor. Water trailed down his cheeks, falling onto the rock beneath him.

"Sp-Spyro?" The voice was weak and dry. Opening his eyes, he saw a black dragonness battered and bruised in front of him, starting with a wild look in her eyes.

Cynder.

One of her wings was pinned under a fallen rock, the remains of his shattered and bleeding heart clenched when he saw just how bruised and battered she was. The color of her scales was faded, blood was splotched on her scales, cuts and scrapes decorated her body, and her breathing seemed unsteady.

He pushed his arms against the ground as they screamed in pain before collapsing. "That has to- to be one of the most pitiful push-ups I've ever seen." Cynder coughed, blood flew out of her mouth.

He stretched one of his paws out and used it to pull himself closer to her. "Word of the-the wise," Her words were broken up by coughing. "Never stand right next to a dragon as they practically go supernova." She chuckled at her own joke before dissolving into bloody coughs.

The pieces of his already shattered heart shattered into painful splinters at the sound of her wonderful laugh being interrupted by such a bad sign. "I think this it Spyro, I think-" She dissolved into coughing again. "I think this is it."

He pulled himself to her side wrapped a bruised and bloody wing around her, "It's okay. You'll be fine." He said, cursing at how shaky it came out.

"No-no I won't." She coughed, "I meant it, you know?" She laughed a shaky laugh. "I love you. I love you, hero boy." The snake charm weighed down on both of their necks, forcing their heads down.

"I wonder if we will be reincarnated together. 'cuz you know, snake charms." She coughed, drawing closer into his chest.

"If it is... I will never rest until I find you." Spryo coughed.

"It's cold." She murmured against his chest.

"Goodbye, Cynder. I love you ." She murmured something under her breath and faded away.

Tears fell from his face as he put a shaky kiss on her head before he too faded away.

* * *

 _Present day..._

Cynder rushed down the halls of Skylander Acadamy, pushing through groups of other Skylanders. She shoved her way through a group of Skylanders, they yelled 'Hey!' and 'Watch where you're going!' after her as she dashed through the halls.

She was not going to miss more than she already had.

Turning (more like swinging) around a corner, slowing for a single, beat she launched herself back into her mad dash towards the courtyard.

Finally, (after many turns and irritated Skylanders) she reached the courtyard.

She stopped to a grinding halt as she exited the massive building and gasped at the scene before her. Tents and booths covered the entire courtyard, people of all races milled about checking out the booths and tents. "Cynder!" She turned, expecting a fellow Skylander, and was met by a red dragon rushing towards her.

"Flame!" She gasped, "What are you doing here!" She said as she was wrapped into a giant hug.

"Oh, you know. Just doing my duties as the Fire Guardian." He said nonchalantly... and was promptly thrown to the ground.

"Why didn't you tell me!" She shouted at him as she pinned him to the floor.

"I..uh...wanted it to be a surprise?" He said weakly, his courage dissipated as soon as her persona went from nice to scary. She seemed to deem this an... acceptable excuse and lifted her foot from his chest. She started to descend the steps towards the fairgrounds, leaving him on the ground as he tried to catch his breath. He noticed that she was walking away and raced to catch up.

"To be fair," he started, "You didn't tell me you were the leader of the Skylanders in all but title." Then, after a thoughtful pause, "Or when you got the title come to think of it." He mused.

Heat crept to her cheeks upon realizing that he had a point, "Well, that-uh-was-uh-different!" She stuttered, he laughed his iconic fire dragon laugh. His hearty laugh made her only more embarrassed.

"I don't see how!" He laughed, enjoying her awkwardness. His laugh was cut short by a playful bonk to the top of his head. "Hey," He hissed rubbing the top of his head, "I didn't deserve that!"

"Aww, was the big, bad, fire guardian hurt by little'ol me?" She cooed, flashing him a look way too innocent for her.

"Shut up."

"Aww, is the baby fire guardian upset? Did I hurt his feelings?" She cooed, relentlessly tearing into his pride with the innocent face and baby voice.

"Ugh. I can never have an antagonistic conversation with you, can I?" He groaned, ducking his head under her attempt to pat his head.

"Nope, 'cuz that's not fun." She said, thankfully, normally as she turned from him and to the massive festival in front of them. She threw an arm around his shoulders and drew him close before dramatically saying, "Now, my dear Flame, welcome..." A dramatic pause as she took one last gaze at the festival before turning her head back to him "...to the Festival of Guardians."

"You stole that from some movie didn't you."

"Way to ruin the moment, Flame. Way to ruin the moment."

(Line Break ;)

The fire's warmth hardly reached his scales, the glow of the slowly dying fire flickered and danced against his chest. He just stared blankly at the burning brush and log as his mind wandered a down memory lane. Sometimes, when the world around him was loud or he got absorbed by his thoughts, he thought he could hear the clang of mithril against steel or the screams of fallen warriors as were burned or stabbed or cut down where they stood. He shook his head scattering his line of thought and bringing him back to reality. The fire was almost out, its flames growing smaller and smaller, its light dimmer. It wouldn't take long for the fire to be burnt out and for the cold air to snuff out any remaining embers.

Then again, he grimly mused, I've seen greater and brighter fires put out faster. He slowly rose from his spot on the grass his bones stiff from sitting for so long, his joints cracked as he lifted himself up. Fallen leaves and dirt fell from his body as he stood for the first time in... in... in a long time.

He pulled the hood of his old, dirty, rumpled cloak over his head and rested them on his horns, their once brilliant gold had faded to a dull, golden yellow. The hood hid his face and his dull scales from the public eye, the rest of the cloak did the same for the rest of his body; covering and hiding it from everyone else.

He rolled his neck, the bones cracking as it turned, and started down the path out of the old meadow. Tallgrass had grown over it, blanketing it in soft blades of green that brushed up against his legs as he marched on.

His stomach grumbled and for the first time, he realized how hungry he was. He stopped for a moment, his eyes widen when he realized just how hungry he was, but, with a shake of his head, he carried on ignoring the pain in his stomach and carried on with his march.

The forest had grown since he last saw it, the trees, once young and bright, were dark and tall, their leaves casting long shadows across the floor of the forest, almost blocking at the sun.

After traveling for some time he came to the edge of the forest, he could see the sun dip below the horizon. He stood there staring at the dying light and only when the sun had disappeared from the sky and the last of the light had left the sky did he tare his gaze away from the horizon and down towards the valley below him. He could see the lights of the towns spread out in the valley below him, he could see the lights of the bustling city and docks that were almost past the horizon.

He turned his eyes to one of the closer groupings of lights, "Home sweet home." He muttered to himself, his voice hoarse from a year of no use. He coughed as he finished the sentence, his throat was sore and dry as well. He shook his head and, with a deep breathe, marched at a slower pace to the village.

The sun had risen in the sky once again and was nearing noon when he strode into the village. He walked down the main street of the village waving to anyone who waved and returning smiles to anyone who smiled at him. The rough cobblestone paths and the simple wooden houses all rang with familiarity as he strode through the town, eventually making it to the other side of the village. He stopped at its edge and saw a large hill with a wall and door in it.

He smiled at the sight of the home in the ground. He walked up the simple, old, cobblestone path towards the door. He smiled when he saw the gardener hard at work, cutting bushes with too long branches and pulling weeds from the flower bed. He stopped at the small gate and leaned over it, propping his head up with his forepaws as he watched Sam work. He leaned a bit too much making the fence creek. "I'm sorry," Sam started, not even looking over his shoulder, "but Mister Durin isn't back yet and I don't have time for visitors."

"How about old friends?" He grinned, Sam shot up and turned around in surprise.

"Mister Durin!" He gasped, holding a hand over his heart. "You- you can't go frightening people like that. It's not proper."

"True, but I'm not that much of a... proper individual, am I?" He said as he entered the garden. "Besides, I'm hungry and I know for a fact that you've been working since dawn… again."

The mole stuttered and tripped over his words in an attempt to deny the accusation. After Durin passed him and stepped into the house he decided he should probably go inside.

As he rushed to the kitchen he eyed the statue of a dragon with its forepaws outstretched, presenting a cushion with outstretched paws. A sword was resting on the cushion, its blade was broken into three different parts, each part was waxed and cleaned down to the smallest of details, even the jagged edges were the blade had splintered. It was made of a material that, when waxed, looked and shined like silver.

CLANG!

He moved past the statue and entered the kitchen, sighing as he saw Durin under a pile of pots and pans. He helped Durin pick himself back up silently before he started to drag him towards the living room. "Sam!" He cried indignantly, "I'm fine!"

"That accident says otherwise." He huffed, his frustration growing as he took the dragon's thin frame, he could see his ribs poking out from beneath the scales.

Which are paler than normal, He thought as he dragged his charge into the living room. "If you can be hauled around by me then you're not fine!" He growled. He dropped the trembling dragon on to the cushions that served as his seat, "You've been starving yourself again! Haven't you!" The last part was more of an accusation than a question.

Durin was, while not completely shocked by the outburst, shocked by the accusation. Sam rarely went that far, unreasonable irritation bubbled up from deep within him. "What I do is no concern of yours." He growled.

"It does when you're trying to kill yourself!"

"I AM NOT!" He roared. Sam stumbled back, frightened and surprised by his outburst. Durin on the other hand, looked completely horrified. "I-I'm sorry, Sam. I Just-just need something to eat."

Sam nodded and ducked out of the room. Durin sighed and looked out the door, towards the shield hanging above the statue presenting the broken sword. It's color was faded and there were dings and scratches all over it. The symbol carved into it was completely unreadable.

He still knew what it looked like. He remembered it perfectly. His breath caught in his chest as he looked down and saw small, stout, dwarf standing below it. The ghost waved hello before Durin blinked and it was gone. He lifted his head back to the shield; remembering what that symbol stood for. The _promise_ it made.

 _All who are behind me are protected._

He never could break a promise.

* * *

 **HELLLOOOO Fanfiction! This is my first fanfic I've ever written(and posted). So, while I will not ask for you guys to go easy on the flame, I do ask that it is _constructive_ not _destructive_. Simple, right? **

**So background information, this has similar elements to The Hobbit and I'll point those out as they show up and yes Durin is from the Hobbit... I would love to explain more but... well... spoilers! So here we are. New Story. New Read. Have fun. I know I am.**

 **Fly high and long, my friends,**

 **Dragon out (Or should I say _up_... OK, I'll stop now)**


	2. Chapter 2 Seal

**Chapter 2**

Cynder was fairly sure her day couldn't get better.

Then it did.

She and Flame were walking down one of the many rows of carnival games and stalls. The festival was set up like a cliché carnival. With rows of stalls and tents all lined up nice and neat. When she Flame rounded a corner they found Stealth Elf and Jet-Vac laughing at something inside a booth.

"Hey, Elf!" She shouted as she and Flame approached, "What's going ooooon…" She trailed off when she looked into the tent. For one moment she was completely silent, barely aware of Flame falling onto his back laughing, as her eyes took in what was in front of her.

"Cynder…" The purple dragon growled.

Finally, what was actually happening in front of her finally fully dawned on her. Soon, she joined Flame on the floor laughing so hard it _hurt_.

There in front of her was Malefor, the legendary Purple Dragon who saved the world three times and the strongest Skylander in history… and he was _hanging_ a few feet off the ground, wrapped and tied in a web of rope.

He couldn't move without tangling himself up anymore and was currently hanging _upside down_. For what seemed like an eternity (but was only a few minutes) the three Skylanders and the Guardian laughed at their friend and comrade.

"Just get me DOWN!" He roared… or as best he could with a muzzle that was partly restrained. Flame simply laughed harder, Jet-Vac (who had finished laughing) spiraled into another fit of laughter, Stealth Elf vailently failed to contain her laughter, and Cynder?

Seeing Malefor's frustration, she rose to her feet, still laughing, and moved to cut him down. When she had an… _idea_. She rested her talon on the closest, most important looking, rope, "How about we make a deal." Malefor's eyes widen and her own glowed mischievously, "If I let you down, you…" She knew what she wanted but a little dramatic pause went a far way in causing panic, "Hmm. You buy all of us whatever we want for... the rest of the day."

"No."

She smiled and backed away from the rope, "Have it your way then." He stared at her as she walked away, a triumphant beat in her walk.

The others stared at her in shock as she walked past them all, there was a beat of silence before Flame started to laugh again.

"Cynder? CYNDER!" Malefor roared.

Everyone realised she was serious when she rounded the corner of the row of tents and disappeared. "Guys?" Malefor asked weakly, "A little help?" They gave him expectant looks.

"The answer is still no." They followed Cynder's example, except for Flame.

"If I were you, I would have taken the deal."

"Shut up."

"Sooo…" Flame started, "Aside from this, how's your day been?"

"Honestly? Pretty good."

The duo received odd looks from the passer byers enjoying the festival.

"Think she'll be back?"

"When she gets bored… probably."

"Of course."

* * *

Cynder was enjoying a cup of hot chocolate when the other two caught up with her. They fell into step beside her as she made her way toward the center of the festival grounds.

"You'll think they'll catch up?" Jet-Vac asked.

"Eventually," Elf replied, turning her attention to Cynde, "Why are you so… more mischievous than usual?"

"The festival is a time to unwind and relax," Cynder said, "Besides with literally all the bad guys locked up, nothing can go wrong this time." She froze on the spot after the words came out of her mouth.

"Cynder? Skylands to Cynder!" Elf waved her hands in front of Cynder. 'What are you looking at - oh." She followed Cynder's gaze to the book stand in front of them.

" _It's out_." Cynder breathed.

The sign above the stand read " _Hobbleton: Home to every book under the sun."_

Then, directly under it, " _Now selling: The third Book Of Erebor: The Mountain King"_

The third book of Durin had released.

* * *

It was decided.

Bacon, eggs, and coffee were only acceptable to consume if Sam made them.

Everything else was sub-par.

And if he had to starve himself so Sam would make? Then he would _gladly_ starve himself. It was just _that_ good.

"So…" Sam started, "Where were you this time?"

"The ruins."

"Ah, see any ghosts." Sam jested.

"More than you would know." True, it was a harmless jest but it was a bit too close to home for him.

They ate in silence for the rest of the meal.

When it was all said and done; all the dishes cleaned and all the food eaten. Sam gave him a letter, "I dared not to open it; it reeks of bad luck and magic." He said as he put on his overcoat and hat, the sun had begun to set in the west.

"I'll keep that in mind." Durin said as he took the envelope from Sam, it wasn't the normal white but a crisp yellow.

A shiver went down his spine when his eyes landed on the seal. His muscles tensed and all his attention became focused on the symbol.

He was the light from the fire flickered over the yellow wax. He distantly aware of Sam asking if he was okay.

"I'm fine." He uttered his attention never leaving the seal.

"Are you sure? I can get you something if you like." He asked taking a step toward the dragon.

"No, no." He said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, yes I'm quite sure."

"I-"

"No, no, that'll be all for now." His voice was quiet as he almost whispered that last part. Sam took his leave and closed the door behind him.

Durin just stared at the seal and it stared back at him.

The seel depicted a lightning bolt crossed with two swords.

* * *

 **Did you miss me?**

 **No.**

 **OK.**

 **I'm sorry if this is shorter than normal, I just needed to get this out of the way. On another note, it might be awhile before my next update because I busted my arm and just got braces. (RIP Bush, my bracers are red, white, and blue for him.)**

 **So, in response to some of the questions I was asked (four). I can, however, only answer…. None of them.**

 **Well, that's not true.**

 **I will answer (to the best of my abilities with giving away too much) the first scene with Spyro and Cynder's death is important later on in the story, What they say can provide you with a clue to what happened. No, Skylands isn't heaven and the sword is basically a magical mcguffin that I haven't fully considered it's power yet, though it plays a huge part in the plot; same with the shield.**

 **Durin is the hermit author in the description and the seal is also a giant thing I'm using to get the plot rolling. Also, if you couldn't tell, for the first few chapters I will be using Durin's perspective for plot movement while Cynder's is for building up characters.**

 **Fly High and far my little dragonnets.**

 **\- Dragon**


	3. Chapter 3: Sun & Rain

**Chapter Three**

The Purple Dragon had retired.

The old dragon would have chuckled at the _mere thought_ of that dragon 'retiring' and (despite his manners) he would have laughed at anyone who said it.

But here it was. And in his book too.

Suddenly, he didn't feel like laughing. In fact, he felt like crying.

 _He_ had let something happen to the dragon he mentored. The dragon he taught to fly, taught to read, taught to fight.

Taught to be dragon.

A dragon who now uses a different name, to forget the past.

A dragon he very much considered his son.

The old dragon gently rested his hand on the picture above the caption, the picture showing a dragon hunched over a desk, crying, his head in his arms.

The sky colored dragon sighed. Oh, how he had wanted to be there. To give someone other than a wooden desk and paper to cry into when things got rough, ot to give him someone to talk to when he needed to talk about… well, anything.

"Oh, Spyro," Ignitus moaned, "Why wasn't I there to help you?"

But he already knew that answer.

And he hated himself for it.

* * *

The cashier at the counter smiled as he handed Cynder and Stealth Elf each a copy of the book and received his payment, "I heard that's his best one yet." The leaned over and whispered.

Stealth Elf gazed at the book with a new, almost religious, gaze filled with reverence. Cynder shook her head at her friend's antics, "I don't know… I think his take on the Legend of Spyro is quite good." She said thoughtfully while Elf fangirled over the new book.

"Aye, it is. One of the best interpretations I've ever read." The mole said.

"I wish I had the third one." Cynder sighed as she looked down at the book in her paw, (her hot chocolate was long gone at this point.) "I've read a few beginning parts of it but never the whole thing."

She almost dropped her book in surprise when the mole slammed a very large and very purple book onto the counter. Its spine had golden lines decorating it and written on the front of the cover in big gold letters were the words _Spyro: A Complete recollection of Durin's interpretation of the Legend of Spyro._

Her eyes widen to the size of the plates and they practically glowed with anticipation and reverence. "How much." She barely even made the proper sounds to form the words, something about knowing that she was in the presence of the book seemed to fill her with a need to be silent.

"It's free of charge." The salesman said, his eyes full of mirth, "Now, I know there are only so many of these books even made…" He stared her straight in the eyes all humor gone, replaced by a dead serious look, "But I think you may be one of the few who truly deserve one." He winked before he went off to go help another customer, his mirth returned as if nothing ever happened.

"Wait!" She called, "What's your name?" He turned and flashed her smile.

"Dale. They call me Dale." He winked before turning to the other customer.

She stared for a moment before deciding to turn her attention to the book in front of her. "Come on, Elf. Let's get this thing home." She picked the book up with a small amount of reverence and started to think of the safest spot for it as she made her way to Festival's exit.

* * *

"I have a nagging feeling that we were just forgotten." Malefor said, breaking the semi-awkward silence that had fallen between them.

"I think you're right." Flame said as he rubbed his chin, "Well then," He said perking up, "Let's get you down from there."

"Be careful-ow." Malefor snapped as Flame walked up and, with a single motion of his tail blade, cut him down.

"Let's just enjoy the festival. Shall we?' Flame said, offering a paw to Malefor.

"Don't talk like that. It's too snobby for you." He growled, he accepted the paw anyway.

A loud, earth shaking, bell boomed once.

Then twice.

Then thrice.

"Oh, crap!" Flame shouted, Malefor raised an eye. "What? I have an example to set. Now I've got to go OK? Great bye!" He rushed as he started running towards the middle of the fair grounds.

Malefor rolled his eyes, "I'm not paid enough for this s-"

"Language!" A old mole yelled. "A hero like you should not swear like that at all! Much less in front of children!" She yelled, pointing her cane at him.

"Maybe Flame was right." He said as he backed away from the suspiciously pointed end.

* * *

Durin had rushed through packing and had left the very night he got the letter.

He seriously regretted that now as he squeezed his thin cloak closer to his body as strong breeze blowed across the open deck of the ship. He also regretted getting such a small ship.

Sure it was fast, fastest he could get his paws on, but did that really matter if he showed up as a frozen corpse?

However, he wasn't dwelling on these things as the airship sped along at speeds he _could_ have met if he was still in top shape. No, his thoughts were on the words playing over and over in his head.

 _I have someone would love to meet you._

Who? Who was she talking about?

 _I need_ _The world needs you again._

No, they didn't. They had the Skylanders.

 _I want to see you again._

No, she really didn't. Not like this anyway.

 _I need you to take care of someone for me. I miss you._

Who? Who!? Besides, it didn't really matter, because she didn't miss him.

No one did.

 _I'm dying._

Even thinking about them now, the words were impossible to believe. She _couldn't_ die. She _just_ couldn't.

 _I love you._

 _Goodbye,_

 _An Old 'Electric' Friend._

He remembered the _fit_ he through when he read those words. He completely lost his shit and almost destroyed his house.

Mortality sucks.

* * *

As the ship landed at the dock a heavy feeling settled over him. The town he landed in was a quaint little village called Archiks (Arc-hiks). He laughed when he heard the name of the island, The Lightning Isles, but now that he was there he didn't feel like laughing at all.

Getting caught in one of the worst storms he'd ever been in (and that's saying a lot) before he had even landed and then he had gotten covered in mud by a cart that had rushed through past him and through a mud puddle.

While Archiks was a very beautiful town, built into the side of a rising hill with a very nice looking colnail look that suited it well. It's people were a little… xenophobic to say the least. If looks could kill he would be dead before he even stepped of the ship.

The looks from passer-byers and people sitting at their windows were more than enough to make him claustrophobic. He picked up his walking pace a little bit, the rain and the stares were starting to get more comfortable by the minute.

 _Top of the hill,_ you _won't miss it._

He followed the directions to the letter, once he reached the top of the hill he looked for any house that looked remotely _her._ Some of the houses on the top of the hill were elaborate and large while others were just large. Others were somewhere in between.

After wondering the cobblestone roads for what seemed like hours, not really taking in the sencery. After, he was rushing…. Kinda. Finally, he spotted a house on a corner. It was by no means small, but it was relatively small compared to the houses around it.

It was a relatively simple house, with plain white walls and windows. The door, however, was not so simple. It had a bronze-yellow color and had a lightning bolt crossed with two swords in the center.

"Vampris," He breathed, a knot forming in his gut, "I'm here." He took off towards the door in a sprint.

* * *

 **HELLO FANFICTION! I'm back! Sorry about the long break, I wanted to make the chapter longer and I needed a longer break than I originally thought. I am back though! I do try to work on them everyday but can't get to them** _ **everyday**_ **. I will try to upload weekly and I might do something for Christmas. I dunno.**

 **Also, I can't upload at school because FFN is blocked… for some reason. I do try to make things interesting and am sorry for any drop in quality writing I tried to draw that last part out more than I should but oh well.**

 **Fly High and Long my wonderful Dragonets!,**

 **-Dragon**


	4. Chapter 4: Pulse

Chapter Four: Pulse

The sun beat down on everyone in the amphitheater as they all waited in anticipation for the Guardians. Cynder, Malefore, Stealth Elf, and Jet-Vac were all sitting in the specially reserved seats at the front of the amphitheater's many rows. They were waiting for the main reason for the festival's existence… the Guardians themselves.

The event would be a showcase of each Guardians' mastery of their element. Which would be followed by a memorial to _the_ Guardians. The Guardians that had served during the time of Spyro and were renowned, not only for their control of their elements but for their efforts in helping to build Skylands up to what it is today.

This year, however, was special. Early in the year the Guardians announced that they would be starting a process of selecting a new Fire Guardian, the first one since Ignitus, and would be announcing them at the festival. Cynder thought that was good and all but…. She didn't particularly like the Ice Guardian, Icicle.

Who just happened to be the Guardian with the most pride. So, they were constantly at odds, making just dealing with the Guardians as a whole painful. However, she wasn't here for them. She was here for Flame.

And for Flame alone.

They started the event with the banging of a gong and Cynder turned her attention from her thoughts to the stage. From behind the red curtain the three current Guardians walked out onto the stage. After waiting for the applause from the crowd to stop their applause, the Earth Guardian Terra began to speak.

"It is with a great honor that I, and the rest of my fellow Guardians, are able to have our festival here at Skylander Academy!" The dragoness began, she seemed to be scanning the crowd for something… or someone. Her eyes locked on to Cynder as she said the next words, "And before we start. I just wanted to thank Cynder and the rest of the Skylanders for hosting us!" Cheers erupted from the crowd at the end of the announcement, "Now let the celebration BEGIN!" Fire shot up from behind the Guardians and Cynder was pretty sure there was a smug look on the Earth Guardian as the fire erupted around her.

"I really wish Flame wasn't the new Guardian." Cynder growled.

"What? Why?" Elf said as the other two shot pointed looks.

"Because if he wasn't I wouldn't have to be here and deal with Icicle." She ground out, sensing her frustration everyone looked away as quickly as possible. They all knew that is was a bad idea to interrogate her when she was in a mood like this.

The Guardians all did their displays, Cynder rolled her eyes at all of them except for Terra's; her's was mildly interesting. Finally, after what seemed like hours of Icicle showing off, it was time for the new Fire Guardian.

The theatre became so silent that you could hear a pin drop on the other side. The anticipation grew as the gong rang three times. One for each current Guardian. Then it bag for a fourth time and on the fourth bang a torrent of fire erupted from the center of the stage. It whirled around like a tornado; sending embers everywhere.

The fire-nado dissipated leaving a cocky looking Flame standing where it once stood-whirled? He flashed the audience a cocky grin before turning to Terra. Terra had a look made of stern iron on as she approached the young dragon. The energy of the whole theatre seem to drain as she started to speak.

"Do you, Flame the Fire Dragon, accept the position of Fire Guardian?"

"Yes."

"Do you, Flame, promise to protect those who cannot protect themselves?"

"Yes."

"Do you, Flame, promise to be the Fire of light and hope wherever and whenever darkness comes?"

"Yes."

"Do you, Flame, promise to be fair and just no matter who or what is placed in front of you?"

"Yes."

"Do you, Flame, promise to protect Skylands until you breathe your last breath, until you burn your last fire, until your final embers of hope and life burn out?"

"Yes."

"Do you, Flame accept the role of Fire Guardian and the responsibilities that come with it?"

"Yes."

Now she turned to the other Guardians.

"Do we, the Guardians approve of this dragon becoming the next Guardian of Fire?"

"Yes." The other Guardians all said in perfect unison.

She then turned back to Flame.

"Rise, Flame Guardian of Fire."

The crowd roared with approval and the three Skylanders next to Cynder followed suit. And Cynder? She leaned back against the wall of the amphitheater and smiled.

She had never been prouder.

* * *

The door, much to Durin's surprise, was made of iron. Not steel. Not wood.

But iron.

How odd and yet in only solidified his belief; this was Vampris's home. He stopped running just as he almost collided with the door. He lifted his hand up to knock on the door.

 _How would she react to him?_

 _Would she hate him?_

 _Would she yell at him?_

 _Would she accept him?_

He shook his head, desperately trying to clear his head of those thoughts. Of _course_ she would; it was _Vampris._ Accepting people was the only non-fighting thing she really… well, _did._

He knocked on the door three times, waited, and then knocked twice. There was no answer as the rain continued to pour, he hadn't even realised when it had _really_ started to pick up but now that he had, he wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of it and inside some place warm.

His heart ached for his comfy chair and warm dwelling in (what was now) the floating Valley of Saf. _Or better yet_ , he thought to himself, _Erebor…. Actually, now that I think about Warfang was a_ lot _more cozy. Warm? No. Cozy? Yep._

"Too bad it's just long forgotten ruins," He sighed, his mind wandering to the state of the city-actually, it wasn't in _ruins_ -It was just abandoned and had slowly been following apart since then.

Yeah, He cringed, _that_ made it sound a lot worse than it actually was.

Just then thee door creaked open and a small yellow head poked out. "Who are you?" The hatchling asked with narrow eyes.

Wait.

...

 _Hatchling_?

He realised he was staring and smile as he lowered his head down to her eye level. "My name's Durin. Wha-" He was cut by the dragon.

"Holy Spyros!" He hid his flinch _pretty_ well, if he does say so himself. "You're _the_ Durin? The author of the _Erebor_ series? I am a _huge_ fan-oh ancestors, you get that a lot don't you?" The little dragon was certainly… _energetic_. Yes, that was a kind word for it.

Despite how often this happened, he chuckled at her enthusiasm. There was something...there was just something about it that made it feel _deserved_. She acted like she was talking to celebrity but at the same time like that celebrity was still a normal dragon.

Energetic wasn't the right word - _refreshing_ was.

"Yes, it is I, the mighty Durin!" He said with a mighty voice, rearing his head up and holding one hand out, now it was her turn to laugh. He chuckled along too - it _was_ pretty silly. As the laughter died off he turned to a more serious matter. "May I come in? I'm here to see your mother." His heart started to berate him once he saw the dragonet's posture slump and a tear fall down her cheek.

He gently rose his paw up to her cheek and nimbly wiped the tear away. Her eyes raised back up to his. "What's your name?'

"N-Nova."

"What a beautiful name. Did you know your mother wanted that name?" The dragonet's eyes widen. "Yes, she did. But you listen to me now, she'll be fine. She's a very tough dragon."

"Tougher than Spyro?" she whimpered.

"Of course she is. Why wouldn't she be?"

"Be-because she's not a purple dragon."

"Listen to me. Being a Purple dragon doesn't mean you tougher than everyone else. Do you know of the Chronicler?" He was trying comfort her to the best of his very rusty ability.

"Mommy says he's a meddling old dragon who's lazier than anyone else." She whimpered.

He chuckled at that. "Yes, he is definitely meddling but I wouldn't say _lazy_. The thing is I met him and he showed me a way to _talk_ to Spyro. You want to know what I learned?"

Nova gasped and nodded her head. "I learned that day that being a Purple Dragon (and I quote) 'It's a whole lot responsibility with basically no reward." He also said that the only thing that made him stand out was his scales and his elements. Anyone could have done what he did; he just did it first." This time he made a show about making sure nobody was listening before leaning in and whispering, "He absolutely _loves_ chocolate. I gave him a piece and he was so happy with me he actually gave me a full and detailed account of his story."

"So is that way your story seems more real than the church's. Because it's real?"

"Yep. Now, let's go see your mother and maybe I'll try and sneak you chocolate and into my next story." Her eyes lit up when he mentioned chocolate and practically _glowed_ at the latter.

He inwardly cheered. No daughter of Vampris would ever say no to, or go without, chocolate. Not on his watch and _certainly_ not on her's.

His semi-jolly mood was completely ruined when he laid eyes upon Vampris.

She was bigger than he remembered and a hell of a lot more sick looking too. Her vibrant yellow was replaced by a sickly, faded yellow. He was too busy staring that he didn't hear Nova mutter 'I'll leave you two alone," before she walked out of the room.

He stood there as if frozen in time, "You know," Vampris said "It's rude to stare." A eyelid opened lazily before closing again. "Grey's a bad look on you."

"I-I-Who is she?" He decided.

"My daughter, who else?" Vampris grunted.

"I dunno. A cousin? a caretaker?" He said as he approached her.

She turned her head towards him and opened both eyes. "It seems our age is catching up to us." She lifted a wing up and he nimbly laid down under it.

"I'm only twenty. You are - what - A thousand?" He coughed as he rested his head on his paws.

"That's not what I meant. Besides, I look good for a thousand year old."

"And for a dying person I'm sure," She nodded to that, "What happened?"

"Cancer."

"Oh."

It was silent for awhile. "What was your favor you wanted?"

"When I die, they - the authorities - are going to put Nova in an orphanage."

"There has to be something you can do to prevent that!"

"There are multiple ways. I chose the one I think she will not enjoy the most but the best one for the both of you. I chose _you_." She was silent and so was he; she was silently bracing herself for his refusal and thinking of ways to convince while he was thinking about Nova and whether or not she would _actually_ enjoy life with him.

"I'll do it." He said, suddenly breaking the silence.

"Great." She said, relieved she wouldn't have to fight him one last time. "I heard there were openings at Skylander Academy." He raised a brow, "For a teacher and a student. Of course Nova's too young but they need a teacher for cartography." She emphasized the last part and he growled at it.

"You said the world needed me. What did you mean?" He switched topics and asked the question that had been bugging him ever since he read the letter.

"Ah yes, was wondering when you were going to ask about that," In truth? She really wished he hadn't brought it up. "A lead on where the Arkeanstone lays was found." Spyro's eyes widened and he was about to say something, "It was found and now (after a ton of bribery, threates, and straight up flattery) it rests on the shelf behind me." He jumped up and scanned the shelf behind her.

She rolled her eyes at his over so predictable behavior, "It's on the far left." He nodded his thanks and grabbed the neatly wrapped stone before settling into a very comfortable position between her and her wing. He slowly unwrapped the cloth around the stone.

As the last flap of cloth was pulled away the bright, white light of the stone filled the room with its wonderful glory. "Funny," Vampris coughed, "Last time I saw it _I_ was under _your_ wing." she chuckled. He shook his head and stood up; giving her the middle talon as he peaked his head out into the hall.

"NOVA!" He cried, "GET IN HERE!"

Only a few moments later did the dragonet rush into the room, "Yes, mist-ooh, shiny." She said as she set her eyes on the crystal. "Waiiiit," she drawled, "Is that what I think it is?"

"Yep." Vampis coughed, a few drops of blood accompanied it.

Both of the dragons looked at her in concern. She waved them off with a nod of her head. "Nova, you know that when I died they were going to take to an orphanage. Right?" Nova's mood disappeared as she nodded her head. "Well, I decided that Durin here is better suited for taking care of you than some uptight, xenophobic mole."

Both dragons stared at each other before point to themselves, "ME?!" They said in unison.

"But I can't-I mean-I just-" Durin stuttered, but he soon felt horrible when he heard Nova's reaction.

"BUt-but you said we'd be forever together!" Nova cried, tears flew from her eyes as she wrapped herself around her mother's neck. "I don't want t-to go-go a-away! I don't want you to die!"

Vampris made a notion with her eyes that Durin understood as _Get over here_ now _. She's your daughter too now._ He sighed as he walked over and put a paw on her shoulder. "Nova…" Vampris croaked, "I don't care how cliche it is but- but I will always be with you. Even if you can't see me." She gently stroked her daughter's head, "When I join the ancestors I will follow you everywhere you go-watching over you. Don't you dare forget that my little Supernova…" She flashed both of them a smile, "I love you… both of you…" and she faded away.

Nova wailed a cry of true, pure anguish so raw that he actually flinched just from the emotion-never mind the volume. She wrapped herself tighter around her mother's neck as she sobbed up an ocean. Durin pulled her away from her mother and wrapped her in a hig of his own. "It's going to be okay, sweetie…" Oh, how he hated lying-no matter how good he was at it.


	5. Chapter 5: Piece

Chapter Five:

They didn't go to Vampris's funeral.

Nova didn't want to so she didn't go and he had to make sure she was fine so he didn't go. When Durin asked why she didn't want to go she simply said, "If I go - I'm admitting she di- she's gone."

He knew they had to go to the academy at some point, so the sparse spare time he had was spent writing a letter to Sam telling him to get the hanging shield and all of his maps and any other cartography gear he could find ready to be moved while simultaneously writing a letter to a moving company to go pick up the gear; while also sending a letter to the Skylanders Academy explaining what happened.

And that he had taken the job, of course.

Eventually, it was all finished… then he realized he had to tell Nova what was going on.

Nova.

What was there to say about Nova? He pondered the night he was writing the letter to the Skylanders. In the short time he knew her she went from being a hyperactive, naïve, dragonet to a depressed, still-kinda-naïve, dragonet. She spent most of the time she had ghosting around the house, staring at walls, and generally being depressed.

Not that he could blame her.

She lost her mother, was adopted by a basically complete stranger, and was told she was supposed to become a Skylander all in what? Ten-maybe fifteen-minutes?

Yeah, he'd been a great parent so far.

* * *

Nova didn't know what to feel.

Scratch that. She didn't want to feel or think. But there is only so much one can do when trying to process the fact that her mother died right in front of her eyes.

Being adopted wasn't as bad as the stories made it out to be. Durin was-well he was Durin. He tried to cheer her up and failed, miserably. He obviously had little to no experience in terms of parenting, but from the looks of things, that wasn't going to stop him from trying to be a good parent to the best of his abilities.

She thought it was very admirable.

She also liked him. Sure, his social skills were… lacking wasn't the right word-the word rusty was. It was clear he use to have some type of social skill, but he could still make her smile and laugh and forget that something was wrong.

For a little while, anyway.

But as she stared at the two swords hung on the wall in her mother's study. She never felt more unhappy in her life.

She knew they were important and that one of them belonged to her now. She knew all about the Prime Guard and Pulse Dragons and how she's one of them. She bawled her forepaws, each paw grasping the rug beneath her in tight coils.

"Nova," Durin said as stepped into the room, she noticed his eyes sweep across the room before they too were glued to the swords. He didn't say anything as he sat down beside her, just looking at the swords. She subtly scooted a little closer to him, even though he wasn't a fire dragon he still gave off a comfy warmth.

"How do you know my mother?" She whispered. The question had plagued her mind since she first learned that they knew each other.

Durin blinked as someone had just punched him right in the muzzle. "Oh-uh are you sure you want to know? I mean it isn't exactly a happy story." She stared up at him, he was several feet taller than her. He looked kind of nervous as he rubbed the back of his head. Why? What happened? How did they meet? Those questions flashed through her mind as she gave him her response.

"Of course I do. I promise I can handle it, I'm a big dragon." She pouted, pulling the best puppy eyes she could muster. In the short time she knew him she learned that if given the correct amount of pressure, his will would give in.

Durin looked back and forth as if to try to find some sort of escape, he stole a glance back down at her and she saw his heart melt in his eyes. After a few fleeting moments of silence, the faded dragon laid down and offered a space under his wing for her to do the same.

She hesitantly accepted his offer and laid down on the carpet beside him, letting his wing draped over her. "Before I tell you how I met your mother. I have to ask, do you know what the Prime Guard are?" He asked.

She nodded her head. "I also know what the Pulse Dragons are." She offered meekly. The walls in the room were a solid brown color, normally it was overlooked, but as she looked away from Durin it was the only thing she could focus on.

Durin chuckled warmly drawing her attention to him, "Good, it makes the story much easier to tell." He winked before clearing his throat, "Now, before we start I'll have you know that the main reason I'm there in the first place is simple: I have one hell of a good memory and one hell of a story to tell."

He began in a nice, even voice that soothed her thoughts and worries, making it incredibly easy to image and focus on the story, "We met in the midst of one of the bloodiest and most well-hidden wars in history…. and it went like a little like this..."

* * *

Malefor had conquered gods and doomsday devices many times... and he would gladly take on everything he's beaten at once if meant never sitting another "meeting" between the Guardians and Skylanders.

Unfortunately for him, that wasn't an option. So he had to suffer through what was barely counted as a meeting and more of a giant argument between Cynder and Icicle. With him and the others pitching in whenever it got too heated or personal.

"We should just kill him!" Icicle snapped, "He's broken out of jail enough to prove that he could do it again. Not to mention how many times he's gotten this close," She pinched her fingers so close together that it looked like they were touching from his perspective, "to releasing some type of ancient evil upon Skylands! It's truly simpler and safer to kill him!" Spyro nodded along to what Icicle was… "stating" Kaos had caused more than enough problems that it would be safer to kill him.

"NO! If we do kill him then were just as bad as _him_!" Cynder shouted, "Because even though it's him, no matter how we put it, we would still be murdering a child. Not to mention if we kill him, shouldn't we _kill_ the people in jail? Or what about the other people who break any law - should we kill those people too? What if we wrong and we just kill a bunch of innocent people? When will the killing stop?" Cynder argued.

"No, we only kill those who are as bad as him!" Icicle roared, taking a step towards Cynder.

Cynder marched closer to Icicle too, "And who defines 'as bad as him'?" She barked, "Hmm. Oh, you don't know, do you? Because you're so focused on killing him you don't care about the repercussions it would have on how we treat everyone else!"

Both dragons leaned closer together, even though Cynder wasn't fully grown and shorter than her - Cynder's aura of authority made her seem just as tall. "Ladies, please," Flame said as he inserted himself between the two, "calm down, no need to start fighting. I'm sure there is some civil way to settle this-" both dragons pushed past him until their snouts were almost touching.

"Girls! That's enough!" Terra boomed stepping in between the two dragons, a giant earth dragon shouting at you and standing in your way is a lot more derailing than a young fire dragon. "While this is an important discussion topic, we have a more pressing one to discuss." Everyone's attention was now wholeheartedly focused on her. "We have a piece of a sword." Malefor raised an eye, this didn't sound that pressing.

"It is believed to be part of a fabled sword called Dragon's fang. A blade forged by a race of beings called Dwarves for their king, and all evidence points to this being a dragon." She focused on Malefor, "A purple dragon." She swept on the last look over the gathered Skylanders and Guardians, "The "heretical" theory about Spyro's second reincarnating already have happened is now all but proven."

"How do we know that." The Lighting Guardian, Voltage, hissed. Being the most religious Guardian Malefor wasn't surprised by his… suspicion.

"Because there's part in the Dwarven archives found with the sword stating it's reasons for its creation and the last known user. Do you want to know what it said? It said, "The wielder was a dragon of the deepest amethyst, a dragon of indomitable courage, a dragon of right and light, with a will of Mirthrill and a flame hotter than the hottest forges. The wielder was a king with no equal, a king cherished and loved by his people, a warrior who was forged in the hottest flames and the deepest and darkest shadows of Evil. The Dragon's Fang was forged for and wielded by my friend, my king, my kin," Terra paused for a second to catch her breath.

Malefor caught a confused look from Flame and caught Cynder with flashes of confusion and concentration blinking on and off her face. Terra then spoke again, "It was forged and wielded by the King of the Mountains of the Misty Peaks and Slayer of Morgoth."

She sucked in a deep breath, bracing herself for the oncoming storm, she then said, "It was wielded by Spyro the Purple Dragon."

* * *

 **DAN DUN DUN! Alright sorry that you haven't heard from me in a while. I rushed the ending of the last one because I was going camping up in the mountains and finished and published it right before I got up there.**

 **Anyway, I'm back so sorry about any problems you had last chapter-send me a message and I will work on it. And a shout out to the wonderful htffan951 for reviewing and commenting about my work! Thank you! Go check him out he writes amazing stories that are really engaging and man! he can really through a good plot twist at you!**

 **Also, do not expect any updates for at least two weeks because of Christmas break and Family. I will be writing though so you might get two or three chapters (probably one really long one or two normal ones) if your lucky and I'm not lazy!**

 **I do have a crossover with Wings of Fire up. It's only a pilot chapter though so It goes back and forth a bit. Go check it out though! Give me a review with what you think may happen because I have no idea of how to handle Cynder's 'thing' she has going on**

 **Merry Christmas my little Dragonets!**

 **Fly high and long but don't hit Santa because that'll be a lot of paperwork!**

 **-Dragon**


	6. Chapter 6 Blurred

Chapter Six: Blurred

"... and that is how I met your mother." Durin yawned. Resting his head on his forepaws he slowly closed his eyes as he stole one last look at Nova, sleeping curled up like a cat. She was tucked under his wing and was fast asleep; her face was oddly angelic for a Pulse Dragon.

All Pulse Dragons have markings on their wings, specifically on the membranes, to her Mother's own markings. While her mother's were two giant swirls that stretched across each respective wing Nova's patterns were what looked like the North Star surrounded by swirls - her wings were folded which made it hard to tell.

A small smile spread across his face as he rested his own head on his paws and let asleep take him.

* * *

 _His wings were limply hanging against his sides. Weighing him down like weights as he trudge past the bodies of fallen warriors and through the pools of blood that had formed on the bridge, blood red tears fell from his own wounds; they_ flowed _from the joints where his wings were connected to his body._

 _The armor he wore, once clean and protective, was full of holes and tears were pieces of the armor was ripped or torn. The silver color had been stained red and black with blood of allies and foes._

 _Three pieces of Dragon's Fang were stuck in its sheath, the blade had been broken on the Dark Master's own blade. He had seen his dwarven cousin grab a piece of the broken blade before retreating further into the mountain fortress; leaving him and the rest of the sword broken and laying on the battlefield as their enemies charged the retreating dwarves and dragons._

 _He had been left out of be necessity, he knew that but as he walked across the blood and body covered bridge a knot formed in his stomach and the feeling that he could have done better. That he could have saved lives if he was there._

 _He tripped over a decapitated head at the end of the bridge and fell face first into the cold stone floor. He shook his snout as he lifted his head towards the throne that sat on a raised platform just a few meters away._

Just a few more meters _, he thought to himself as he pulled himself forward with broken hands. Summoning the last scrapes of his strength he pushed his limbs and was able stand on unsteady feet. He stumbled forward a few feet before collapsing again._

 _As he fell he threw out his arms and was able to catch himself on the edge of the throne. He panted for air as he pushed through the pain and pulled himself onto the throne of Erebor._

 _For a few minutes he just laid there, his face pressed up against the cold stone chair of the throne. His breathing was short and shallow, his muscles burned like fire with pain. At least, the ones he still could feel._

 _Summoning the true last remnants of his strength and will he pushed against the seat of the throne, his limbs and back screamed out in agony. He turned halfway before collapsing back onto the throne but this time he fell onto his back._

 _He winced causing his muscles to burn with even more pain when he heard a squishing sound come behind him as his torn wings hit the throne._

 _He lifted his head to take one last look at his kingdom, distanly aware of the sounds of fighting in the distance behind him, before he took one last look down the bridge and out towards the entrance, seeing only a glimpse of sunlight, before his head rolled back and his crown slid off his head. The clang of the crown hitting the ground marked the death of The Mountain King and the end to the line of Durin._

* * *

The next morning Durin woke to Nova curled up in a ball, her tail was tucked close to her chest and her scales reflected the light, the light made her yellow scales a bright blinding yellow that was practically a light source by itself.

He made a move to stand, lifting his wings, but when he tired to move he felt something weigh down on his leg before he was pulled back down. He looked at his leg and found Nova had, at some point during the night, wrapped part of her tail around his leg and was now using it to pull him back down. He smiled softly at her attempts to get him to lay back down before gently complying and gingerly laying down beside her. As he let his wing gently rest on her, like how a leaf falls from a tree, he took a look around the study - truly taking it in, the brown walls, the bookcases that lined the wall, filled to the point where books were stacked on their sides on some shelves.

There was a desk shoved between two bookcases overflowing with papers and what looked like… scrolls? Or were they maps? He couldn't see the difference as all he could see were papers and large rolls of parchment haphazardly stacked on the desk.

Well… stacked was being generous, they were _piled_ haphazardly on the desk-each piece threatening to slide off. A small smile formed on his muzzle, "I guess some things never change, eh Vampy?"

He hated how he could do this. Act like she was still there, how he could act like she never just died in front of him, how he wasn't just left to care for an emotionally damaged dragonet. He hated that he didn't even shed a tear over his best friend's death.

Had he really became that detached from the world? How would he react if Nova was killed right in front of him? He would care, wouldn't he?

But deep down the guilt told him otherwise.

Maybe, he really was a monster.

He looked back down at Nova with a heavy sigh. He may be a monster but as his Vampris herself once said you could be anything you want and still be a good person.

So, he may be a monster but, at the very least, he would be a good person. And, despite what logic and what his brain told him, he cared about Nova.

And he would protect her until the end of time.

* * *

The air was dry and cold, the stars provided little light through the thick cloud layer. Cynder strode down the isles of the abandoned festival, for a place that used to be so bright and alive the silence was deafening.

Cynder Piaf no attention to any of this and instead was focusing on her meeting with the Guardians. When the sword was mentioned a faint feeling nostalgia and familiarity tugged at the back of her mind. When the Dwarves were mentioned she felt just a tad homesick.

And for the life of her she couldn't figure why. She had the distinct ich in the back of her head that she should know _way_ more about this. It was similar to the feeling she got when reading the _Spyro_ Book, a feeling that it was true and real - which it was - but not only that but another feeling. A feeling of such firm vindication that Durin's intrepidation was the _correct_ one that when she explained it to Elf she had said that it was like she had lived through it.

…. Did she? Cynder waved the motion away with a shake of her head as continued to walk down the deserted aisle.

Cynder had a few moments of peace as she felt the sharp grass beneath her. Her mind was finally clear and she could focus on the

more imminent problems. Like what this meant for Malefore.

He was her big brother in all but blood. Always giving her a helping hand when she need and even when she didn't but no matter what he was always there. But know they had figured out Spyro had lived a lot longer than anyone though which meant multiple things and asked one big question - was he still alive.

As her mind raced a million miles per hour she didn't notice how the shadows became darker than usual and there was a distinct feeling of something wrong. A cold scale crawling feeling creeping up her spine.

A violent breeze of cold wind tore through the aisle she was in. Cynder's body shook and trembled from the cold shaking her from her thoughts.

Cynder peered at the shadows with increasing suspicion. Her eyes scanned every nook and cranny, she felt a pickle in her spine. One she had felt before… in the undead catacombs!

With a jump and the flapping of her wings she rose higher into the night sky and further from the shadows. She turned and spun searching for any sign of movement that might give a may be attacker away.

 _Fweet._

Cynder strained her ears to listen. Was that a bow string? Had some shot a bow?

Her questions were answered when a black arrow pierced one of her shoulders.

She fell to the ground in a downward spiral, her wing know useless, leaving a trail of blood as she fell.

The wind howled in her ears and it whipped across her body.

Cynder felt cold around where she was pretty sure the arrow hit. But it didn't feel cold it… it felt wrong.

Darkness crept through her vision and she felt her mind slow and fill into incoherent jumble with her last coherent thought being _Oh, I've been poisoned._

Now all she could do was watch the stars get further away as the wind howled and her body slowly became numb.

She barely registered something hitting her back- or did she hit something? Her head was like a giant weight as it rolled over.

Her bison was blurry and was becoming even more blurred. Two black mushes stood over her as they too blurred and then… nothing.

* * *

One thing Flame realized too late about being a Guardian was all the _paperwork._ After Terra's little bomb shell they had all disbanded. Cynder had literally just shadowed away like she usually does when she's upset and Flame and Malefor had spent most of the day looking for to no prevail. Elf, Jet-Vac, Terra, and Voltage had left for lunch while Icicle probably went to go brood.

After hours of searching he ran into Terra who than dragged him to anoffice with disgusting sand colored walls that was completely barren save a chair and a desk. She than dropped a mountain sized pile of papers and a pen before leaving him to his own devices with the exscuse of "I have more pressing matters" right before her stomach growled.

Earth Dragons.

So, here he was shifting through a stack of paper almost the size of him. "Complaint about something irrelevant, something irrelevant, why is this even in here? Taxes, Taxes, and what do you know more taxes. New teacher coming to the academy, and- wait what?" He yelped.

He read the name, job, then name again to be sure. "Holy crap." He felt his mouth hang open. How the heck had Eon manage this?

Soon another thought came into his mind unbridled. How was _Cynder_ going to react?

He leaned back, his mind already thinking of reactions and whether or not to bring popcorn.

Hmmm…. popcorn.

 **Heh. Sorry if I wasn't clear about it but I was planning on taking a break on my Christmas break. So sorry for anyone who got confused and thought I missed an upload.**

 **HAPPY NEW YEARS! Here's to hoping 2019 won't suck!**

 **Also poor Flame he know has to deal with paperwork. Cynder got kidnapped, Durin hates himself, and Nova likes to use him like a teddy bear. Things are finally shaping up and I can't wait for next time.**

 **PS my computer is glitching out and crashing a lot know so updates are definitely going to be slowed until I get it check. I'm also writing on my phone now so please forgive me for grammar mistakes.**

 **Fly High and Long my little Dragonets!**

 **Dragon**


	7. Chapter 7 Legacy

Chapter Seven: Legacy

It was around mid morning when Nova's eyes slowly fluttered open. She yawned letting Durin know she was awake as he shook himself from his thoughts. "Good morning, Sleepy." He teased lightly.

"Err… Shut up," She puntcated her words a yawn. "I'm too tired to care about manners." She answered his unasked question. He withdrew his wing so she could stand.

"So when do you want to talk about the Academy?" Durin asked from his spot on the floor as he stretched out his back.

"Oh, um, I-I, do-do I-" Nova became a stuttering mess as she tried to form a response, Durin on the other hand? He just laughed at her.

As she stuttered she tried to come out with some sort of comeback. Anything. When an idea hit her… but wait, that didn't make any sense! Unless… "Are you Spyro?" She asked softly.

He stopped laughing and she felt the temperature drop. "No...No, I'm not. Why?" He asked. His voice was quiet and timid. It shook like a lone pole in an earthquake.

"Well you had said Spyro had been the l-last of the line of D-Durin, right?" She swallowed the lump in her throat. When she looked at the way Durin was frozen as if she had paralyzed him, his shoulders were tenser than she thought possible.

Finally, he looked up from the floor with a sad, far away look in his eyes, "No, I-I," He sighed, "My home town was slaughtered by the G'Norcs, including my parents." Nova took a step closer to him unsure of what to do. "I had ran at the first sight of the G'Norcs," He sucked in a deep breath, "I had made it halfway through the woods near the village when some G'norcs, who must have seen me run, ambushed me and dragged me back to the village." He paused for a moment as if summoning his courage.

Nova would have told him to stop but she was too shocked to react. "They-they needed a dragon's soul," Durin choked out, "For some crazy ritual to bring their dead legend back to life but the commander had jumped the gun. Killing all the dragons before they could capture one. But they found me. They rip-ripped my soul out of my body and took my element, my color, everything with it." Now Nova took a step back, Durin was soulless.

He let out a sad chuckle when he saw her horrified face, "I know, I know. The only reason I'm alive is because _of_ Spyro. You know how I said I've talked to him before? Well, I talked to him after he saved me and when I was at the Chronicler's." Nova gasped.

Nova was shaking, this was horrible! "Spy-Spyro _died_ in my _arms_ , Nova. I held him as he died. I hadn't cried until then, not even when they took my soul, I just glared and been a smart-ass. When he saw me crying he said ' _Don't cry. Brave Dragons like you are what this world needs, not old weapons of war like me."_ Durin sobbed, tears fell from his face; this time Nova knew what to do. She rushed to him and threw her wings around him and her arms around his neck. "He said that if I ever needed a new name Durin was open and that I had earned it." She buried her head in his shoulder crying herself.

"I used to be a Skylander, but that wasn't for me. Not then, there were to many rules and what not. So I left and became an author and, well, you know the rest."

"Durin."

"Yes, Nova?"

"You did earn it. You earned your name, Dad." She didn't care that he wasn't her biological father, she had a feeling she would like Durin more anyway.

* * *

The first thing Flame noticed when he woke up was the paper that was stuck to his face and the drool running down from his mouth. He lazily lifted his hand to block the sunlight from intruding his vision. He flipped his head to face the other side and sighed in relief as he closed his eyes…. But he realised what he was doing.

He shot straight up and looked at the ruined paper in panic; his panic skyrocketed when he saw it was a bill but soon dissipated when he saw who it was addressed to.

Should he?

Eh, the Church was dumb anyway.

He crumpled the paper into a ball, threw it in the air and shot a string of fire shaped to be needle sized and shaped and scored a direct bull's eye in the center of the paper ball. It didn't burn for long, it didn't even touch the floor before it turned into ashes. It's ashes fell softly like snow across the floor. He chuckled to himself before returning back to work.

The Church of Spyro was a lot of things. Popular, powerful, and had some of the most fanatic followers alive. And not his favorite people, he personally didn't believe Spyro was some all reincarnation god. He existed, but Flame didn't believe he was some god.

"Taxes, taxes, and more taxes." He spoke, signing off on the ones he thought were important and burning the rest. Not a great idea, yes, but he didn't really care. He was the Fire Guardian! No one could touch him!

After what seemed like eternity of signing papers the stack had diminished until it was only a few inches tall. He looked at the window behind him and saw that the sun had risen significantly since he last checked. It had to be around three now.

His door flew open and Malefor barged in. "Flame!"

Flame jumped and yelped in surprise and fell from his seat. He banged his head against the side of the desk as he hit the floor. "Malefor!" He shouted, he was about to complain when Malefor jumped on his desk - scattering all his papers all over the floor.

"Where's Cynder?" He accused. He leaned over to peek under his desk, when he found nothing he shot him another accusatory look. "What did you do to her?"

"First of all, nothing! Second of all," He growled, swiping at Malefor with his tail, "Who do you think I am? Cynder's my best friend! Not an adopted sister who I have a crush on! Oh, wait!" He shouted, He glared at Malefor, "That's _you_."

"S-Sh-Shut up!" He stammered, a small blush raising to her face, "You like her too!"

"I might," Flame growled raising to his feet, "but I'm professional about it and understand she doesn't like me in the same way. Now, what did you mean by 'Where is she?'"

Malefor shot him another glare, "She hasn't been seen all day. No notes, no messages of any kind. Just gone without a trace." He sighed.

"She's probably just out flying. You know how she gets sometimes, not to mention she looked pretty shaken up after Terra's little bomb drop." He pointed out.

"True, but she usually leaves some kind of note." He leaned toward him and whispered, "Between you and me. There's the one spot on the fair grounds that just feel… wrong."

Flame raised an eyebrow before saying, "Show me."

* * *

Malefor watched Flame with interest as he paced in a circle. "You're right there's something here." He stopped and lowered his head to sniff the ground. "I think we need to take this to the other Guardians - probably Eon too. There is something weird here." He took a few steps backwards. "But not here."

Makefor was too tired to give him a compliment about his detective skills, he was still reeling from Flame's previous comments. He loved Cynder, he would admit that, he had been raised along with her, they both had been adopted by Eon when they were both found abandon by a river. They were siblings in every way but blood. He had hatched before her and vowed to protect her no matter what

And now she was missing. Because he hadn't been there to protect her.

But he didn't like her in that way.

Right?

"Hey, Mally!" Flame shouted from a few yards behind him, he hadn't notice him pass by. "You coming? Or are you just going to be a statue all day?"

* * *

Eon and the Guardians were just as confused as they were about the spot of wrongness. "I wonder what caused this?" Voltage asked, "Perhaps some type of evil?" The duo hadn't told them about Cynder - or their theory about the spot's connection to her disappearance.

"No," Eon said, "Something far, far worse I think." kneeled down and touched the grass with two fingers. He seemed to be in deep concentration to Malefor. Malefor knew what he was doing, He was trying to sense any clue to what it was or who might have done it.

Malefor looked around at the assembled Guardians and Skylanders. All the Guardians except Icicle were there along with Elf and Jet-Vac. Everyone but him, Eon, and Flame gave the area a wide berth.

Finally Eon stood, Malefor moved next to him just in case he needed someone to lean on. Finally, after a few moments of silence, Jet-Vac broke the quiet. "What did you find?"

Eon held his forehead with one hand while waving Malefor away with the other. "I don't-I don't know… but whatever it was it was dark and it was very powerful." Malefor wasn't scared easily and was rarely afraid of an enemy. But there was an odd look in Eon's eye that disturbed him. It was fear and that's when Malefor became afraid.

Of an enemy no one knew anything about.

* * *

 **I finished way sooner than I thought. Waaay sooner. So I thought upload it to make up for lost time. Anyway, now you know Durin's backstory! Or is it? And No Cynder this chapter maybe next chapter. Also, Nova is the best and Durin is broken; so now there is two broken dragons instead of one… whoops, I will be exploring Durin's backstory more as the story goes on as well as Pulse Dragons and Prime Guards.**

 **I will touch on the Church of Spyro later as they do become very important. Anyway not much to say this chapter in terms of technical things, so enjoy!**

 **Fly high and long my little Dragonets!**

 **Dragon**


	8. Chapter 8 Catch

**Disclaimer: I do not own Spyro or Skylanders**

* * *

Chapter 8: Catch

Cold.

An indescribable cold that made the scales on her back crawl and sent shivers down her spine. The cold seemed to go right through her scales and grab her core with icy fingers.

The next thing she realized was that her eyes weren't closed, but open. She couldn't even see her own body and could barely see the movement of her forepaws - which were literally almost touching her!

However, she could feel something other than the cold. She stretched her claws out and grabbed the strange fabric that surrounded her. It was worn, she could tell that much, and it felt rough like a…. Like a bag.

Her teeth clattered and her bones shook from the icy bit of the breeze that blew through the sack bag that she had been stuffed in like a hot knife through butter. It felt like she hadn't seen the sun in… in… she didn't remember when she had been stuffed in the bag. In fact, all her memories seemed to blur and mix together, she couldn't recall anything at all!

Panic surged through her, she pushed and shoved her body in different directions. She tried to spread her forelegs buy felt something holding them together.

She felt a prickle on the back of her neck - her only waring before something hit her in the back of her head and everything went black. As the darkness spread over her visions she remembered her name.

She was Cynder - and she was going to get out of there.

One way or another.

* * *

Travelling was something Durin did not do very often. Sure, he had done a lot of what could be consider "travelling" during the war. In fact, he had come to despise it, whether that was his laziness influencing his opinion or maybe he just didn't like travelling on airships. They were always so cramped and full of people, not to mention 'fans' who wanted his attention.

Nova, on the other hand, had a very different opinion. "Ohh, I can't believe this is happening!" She had been practically been bouncing off the walls since he told her. He was _never_ going to give her caffeine if she got this excited over an airship. "I've never been on one before! This is so exciting!" She cried as they walked ( _he_ walked, she _bounced_ ) down the road to the airport.

He could resist an eye roll when she almost tripped over her own tail. After a few minutes of her babbling he pushed the babbling to the back of his mind and decided to focused on how he was going to start the next chapter of his book. A thought that had plagued his mind for awhile, he was stuck on how to start because… because it was one of those chapters that are easy to write but difficult to start.

He was toying with a few ideas when Nova shoved her face into his, "What's it like? What's it like? What's it like?" She almost shouted. He stumbled backwards his ears ringing.

"First of all, _never_ do that again!" He snapped, "Second," He paused taking a second to calm down. He took a second to think about how to describe it; on one hand he could just tell bluntly or he could describe like a story. "When you take off your body lurches forward with the airship but it feels like you insides got left behind and you got this wonderful sensation of free fall as the ship you stand on lifts into the air." He finished with a jump and a flap of his wings, landing on the other side of Nova with a smirk.

"Come on now, it's your turn to see for yourself." He smirked. Nova stared in awe. "What?" He asked feeling self-conscious,

"You can fly _normally?_ " She shouted.

"Uhhhh, yes?" He asked, oblivious to why this was such a big idea. He caught a odd look from a passing citizen and just shrugged his shoulders. "Can you?"

"No! No dragon can! We can't support ourselves!" She exclaimed, "It's impossible!"

Oh.

 _Wait, what?_ He thought, _How does a species forget how to fly? That's like a frog forgetting how to_ jump _!_

His mind raced to find an answer to that. What could have happened that made them forgot how to fly? It was as simple as flapping their wings! He thought backed to when he learned to fly. It was blurry and he couldn't remember anything specific about just that he had been talking with-oh.

Ooooh.

But that doesn't make sense! Surely the Dragons hadn't forgotten how to teach flying - and if they had, Vampris definitely knew about it so why would Nova not know how to fly? His brain raced to make the connection, what was he missing?

"Dad?" Nova's voice was quiet and soft. "Are you Ok?"

"What?" He asked coming back to reality, "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Did your mother ever teach you how to fly?" Her gaze darkened and her posture slumped; all her previous energy had been drained out of her at the mention of her mother.

"No. No, she didn't." She said, her words and voice seemed to also been drained of all their previous energy. Her vision became focused on the ground near her feet; her wing symbols' glow dulled.

Durin winced at his own stupidity, "Nova, I'm sorry. The reason I asked was because there's more to flying than just flapping you wings. There's this… It's complicated. But know this; all dragons can fly-it seems somehow most have forgotten how." He said before adding, "Can the Guardians at least fly?" Nova shook her head no.

He wrapped Nova in a hug, "I'll teach you to fly." He said as he released her.

"Really?" All her energy seemed to return as if had never gone away, except the energy didn't return to her eyes, they stayed dull.

"Sure thing, kiddo." He smiled, "Later. I promise. Now let's get going, time for you to see second rate flying." He joked.

* * *

Nova had been surprised by how easy it was to get through the airport and before she knew it she was standing in the open, the heat of the sunlight warmed her scales and felt like a comfortable quilt wrapped around her on a cold winter day, the wood beneath her had worn weathered colors from countless voyages.

All in all she was very impressed.

"Ohmygodthisisamazing!thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" She shouted as she threw herself into an embrace with Durin. The weight of a heavy bag and a twelve year old dragon crashing into him seemed enough to make Durin lose his balance.

He laughed as he fell backwards onto the deck, his own pack preventing him from being hurt. Passing passengers shot them glares or amused smiles as they walked around the duo. "Alright, alright, alright!" He laughed, " I get it. You're welcome! Geez. Kid, one of these days your going to get to big to do that." He shook his head happily as she smiled before jumping off him.

"C'mon, c'mon! Let's go see the room!" She spoke faster than he thought possible as she bounced away. He quietly laughed to himself before following her down the corridor.

Nova skidded to a stop just short of the rooms and came to a certain realisation staring down the light brown hallway with doors lining the walls. For a ship with a bunch of passengers on it was surprisingly barren. As in no one was in the hallway.

She had no idea which room was her's. A small breeze softly blow over her, despite the sunny sky it had become cold over the course of the day, the cold wind made her shiver. She heard footsteps as Durin came up from behind her, out of breath and panting for air. "Oh ancestors! I'm out of shape."

He looked down the hall and just stared before rummaging through his satchel looking for something. She blinked, when had he put that satchel on? It wasn't there when she tackled him. She had notice him pull out a small piece of paper until he put an arm around her, which was a bit awkward because he was taller than her, and waved it in front of them. "Ta-da! Let's see…. Ah, Room 14!" He said with enthusiasm… but there was something off. There was a undertone that she couldn't place but once she heard it all she could see was that his smile and the enthusiasm, while plenty convincing, was fake.

"Well, what are we doing? Let's go!" _Two can play that way, old dragon._ She smirked before racing off to find the room. Her paws hit the wood floor incredibly fast but at the same time they were soft and quiet; a trick she picked up from her mother.

She felt the ship stutter and jerk under her paws causing her to fall face first onto the floor. "Nova!" And just like Durin was at her side helping her up. "Are you ok?"

She rubbed her muzzle gently, "Ow, ow. Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." There was another rumble causing her to lose balance again; but this time she was caught by Durin. There was a loud roar as the engines turned on and a sudden lurch, sending both of them, each standing on two legs, forward.

Durin caught them with a mighty flap of his wings, which were only partially unfolded even using _all_ of the elbow space available to him. He grunted in concentration and in pain as his wings dragged against the walls.

The ship started to rumble and shake, Nova felt her stomach drop as the ship lurched one final time before a feeling of freefall settled in her gut… were... were they… were they flying?

A feeling of wonder filled her as her body moved by itself. She broke out of Durin's grasp, almost tripping over her own feet, and dashing out of the hall and out onto the deck; pushing past any of her fellow passengers who got in her way. "Nova!" She heard Durin call to him but she didn't care, all that matter was getting out to the deck.

To the sky.

Only a distant, detached part of her realized that Durin was shooting her worried and fearful looks, and that she had thrown her bags down to ground as she ran down the wooden corridor.

She ran so fast the her surroundings blurred as she zoomed by. She sped out the door of the hallway and across the side of the deck, only stopping by literally crashing into the rail. She stared in wonder and amazement as she stared up at the clouds and around at the sky as they lifted higher into the air.

The marvel of flying was so wonderful! It was this distinct of freedom that she _knew_ in her bones could only be achieved and reached through flying.

Then her body moved on its own once again. Pulling herself onto the rail, she ignored the horrified gasps and cries of the watching bystanders, as she tensed her legs and spread her wings ready to jump a distinct, detached, far away part of her mind was shouting at her to stop. But it was too late.

She jumped.

She spread her wings and let the wind fill them, she rose a few feet in height; an indescribable sensation of freedom and content filled her veins and an amazing, addicting feeling of control flooded her mind. She saw the island she called home spread out below her as she glided.

Then she regained control of her body and realized the big flaw in her plan.

She couldn't fly.

Guess she was going home sooner than she expected.

Panic shot through her as she started to fall, her wings flapped uselessly, trying to regain control as she tumbled through the air. The wind whipped and lashed at her ears as she tumbled through the sky as a mess of limbs. The people on the ship screamed as she fell, her own voice joining them as she fell past the ship. She fell past the bottom of the ship, she could see the bottom of the ship, she was going to die! She was going to die!

 _ **She didn't want to die!**_

 _Whoosh_.

Air rushed past her face, carrying her previous momentum down to the island below. But she wasn't falling….what?

What was going o-

"Oof," she grunted as heavy weights seemed to push against her body, even against the parts of her were facing down the weight pushed against her as if those sides were facing up and someone put an anvil on them.. It was like gravity was fighting over her, the weight was constricting around her like a snake attempting to crush her to death.

She yelped as she started to fly upwards, faster than she thought possible. She still couldn't move anything but her eyes, which darted about trying to figure out what was going on. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw part of her foreleg was outlined in hazy blue light.

She had the air knocked out of her lungs when she suddenly stopped above and just to the side of the deck. She saw the crowd look at her with eyes full of amazement and awe, some looked at her others looked at someone else. When she followed their eyes and saw what they saw only one thought was on her mind.

"Oh, shit." She muttered meekly.

Durin stood in the middle of the deck surrounded by bewildered people. One of his arms were raised and pointing right at her, the paw alight with the same hazy, blue _fire_ that outlined her arm.

An itch crawled up her spine causing her to shudder even frozen as she was. It was like she could feel her sins on her… back. That wasn't that bad because she never really did anything wrong, right? It still felt disturbing, though.

One of Durin's eyes were an empty block void, the other had a single multi colored pupil. Which was alight with the hazy, blue fire.

" _You. Are. In. So. Much. Trouble."_ He growled.

Welp. She's dead.

* * *

The stars seemed to be duller when ever Malefore stepped into the "Wrong Spot" as they had taken to calling it. "It's weird," He whispered to himself drawing a line where stopped and began for him.

"The others say they can't feel it until…" Malefore looked behind him to the two stalls where the spot supposedly was, "...there. Yet, I can feel it here." He moved to the other side of the line so he no longer felt it.

The moon was exceptionally bright, Cynder would have loved it. Cynder…. They had searched all day but found nothing other than the "Wrong Spot" out of the ordinary. And as their chances of finding any other clue to her disappearance dwindled his frustration grew.

He was glad he wasn't standing in the Spot because it seem to make all his negative emotions amplify and stronger. Flame said that it felt like something was slowly crawling up his back, the others said similar things and he agreed.

But that was a lie.

It didn't feel "wrong" like the others did, it… it felt _right_. There was this horrible, sadistic, _satisfying_ , feeling that made his skin crawl in a _good_ way. In a way that made him feel _good_.

And then there were these whispers. Whispers of power, of unimaginable strength, of the ability to save thousands-no _millions_.

And the worst thing? He _liked_ it. He _liked_ its seductive whispers. He liked it _all_. If he could only reach out and grab it. He felt his body move closer to the spot, he took -

No.

No.

 **NO!**

He wouldn't listen. He wouldn't. He wouldn't listen. He wouldn't listen.

He recoiled back from the spot, as if hit. He felt the Darkness reach for him and he felt part of his mind, the part that wanted the best for everyone, reach back. It could give him the power to… to… **NO!**

He junmped back from the spot and gasped, the was a shadowy tendril reaching out of it and towards him. He started to panic and shot a pillar of fire right at it. He _felt_ it recoil and then heard it _hiss_ ,

 _Very Well. We await you return, Masssster._

He turned and ran. He _ran_. He ran and he ran and he ran until he slammed face first into the flank of something.

He stumbled back and saw that the "thing" was a dragon. A dragon with bluish-white scales and stood just as tell-if not _taller_ than the Guardians. They had a white beard and a… a familiar smile.

"You should watch where you going…" He started to chuckled but trailed off when he saw Malefore, before bending his long neck down to get his head closer to him. Their heads became inches about and he gave Malefore a very odd stare.

Like the stare you give an old friend who changed so much you didn't recognize them at first. "What's your name, young dragon?" His voice was polite and soft but conveyed authority and _years_ of experience.

Malefore almost gasped in shock, somewho didn't know who he was on sight? That was interestng… and refreshing. "M-Malefore, sir." He stuttered, he didn't know why but he felt indebted to this dragon. Along with nervous, apologetic, and… and hopeful.

To his surprise the old dragon chuckled, "No need to call me "sir". I'm not your superior and we're not in the army." His voice was gentle, calming, and soothing all out once.

"Th-then what do-do I call you?" He tripped over the words as they came out and was surprised. He _never_ did that, _never._

"Just call me the Chronicler. Now, could you point me the way to the Guardians and your Master Eon?"

* * *

 **Whelp. Durin's pissed and has the ability to levitate things. The Chronicler showed up randomly, Cynder's stuck in a bag, Nova's scared, and Malefore is fighting against his inner demons. Oh, and Cynder's still missing. Looks like Durin is going to have deal with quite the mess when he gets there.**

 **So, a little bit of an update in terms of scheduling. I'm going to have a four day weekend starting Friday. But because of things I have going on in my life and because I need to get the normal weekly schedule back there won't be an update until next weekend. Not this one but the one after.**

 **Why? Because I'm updating this now and am going to spend up until then writing and dealing with other life issues. Sooo yeah. Also if anyone draws a comparison between Sans' powers and Durin's that's because Durin's are heavily based on his.** _ **Based**_ **being the key word because they are not the same. His powers will be explained next chapter along with the Chronicler's little visit.**

 **Fly High and Long, my Little Dragonets,**

 **-Dragon**


	9. Chapter 9: Story

Chapter 9: Story

The feeling of having incredibly heavy weights pushing against her on _literally_ all sides was something Nova got used to in the… one, maybe two, probably three, hours Durin had her suspended in the air above her bed in their room.

He had moved all their luggage into their room with them when he marched back into the cabin with her in tow. The luggage had been neatly stacked in the corner of the room and she had been hung above her bed while he sat on his. She hadn't said a word while he settled for glaring at her with one flaming eye.

She landed on her bed with an _oof!_ The gravity magic holding her in place disappearing as quickly as it came. She turned to stare at Durin and saw him wrapping his tail around himself as he laid down to sleep. She opened her mouth, her brain was drowning in questions, but he cut her off, "...Just-just go to sleep, Nova." He sighed, exhaustion hanging on every word that left his mouth. His tone was made it clear that he was too tired to talk and that any tries to get him too would be ignored.

"O-okay, Dad." She stumbled awkwardly over the words as she laid down to sleep. Her head was buzzing with questions; how did he know magic? How could he _use_ magic? How could he use it for so long? She tightly squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to clear the questions bouncing around out of her head.

She tossed and turned for what felt like hours, never coming close to sleep. Instead her eyes would lock onto whatever was in front of her, whether it was the ceiling, the wall, Durin; it didn't matter what she did or were she looked or how tired she was, her eyes wouldn't close.

Each bed had a circular window above it, like the windows you see on boats. The silvery light from the stars and moon shone through the window providing just enough light that she could see the slow rise and fall of Durin's chest and could see just how sparse the room was. Just a desk and the beds, that's all there was for furniture in the room.

She thought it was sort of cute.

She sighed, rolling on to her back, she closed her eyes for what felt like the briefest of moments but before she knew it she had fallen into a restless sleep.

When she opened her eyes it was lighter, as if the sun had started to peak over the horizon and she felt more energised but the most prominent thing was Durin, his face taking up most of her vision. She made a confused sound in the back of her throat that quickly turned into her shouting, "Ancestors! What happened!?"

He had a dark red cut across his muzzle, it looked fresh and the scales that it had cut through were jagged and uneven, some were hanging onto his face by a thread's hair. And she had a sinking feeling she knew why as her tail blade felt as if someone had sprayed water on it. The side of Durin's muzzle was a deep crimson, relief clear in his grey eyes and he still had that easy going grin-even if parts of it were stained red.

"This?" He asked innocently, "Well, let's just say I learned it's safer to turn _tail_ and run whenever you're having a… rather _active_ nightmare." He winked, backing up to give her spaced and to let his words register.

"Turn _tail…_ " She whispered, getting the hint she quickly raised her tail to check what _exactly_ was on it. She felt on the air get sucked out of her lungs as her eyes stared at the blood on her tail blade. She saw something grey almost completely stained red. She felt the world spin and felt her stomach doing jumping jacks as she slowly turned the blade to get a close look, already having a gruesome idea of what it was.

Durin must have notice her gaze because he quickly plucked it off her tail before she could get a good look at it. "I got that," He said, quickly moving his paw down out of her vision. "Why don't you," He gestured to a door she hadn't noticed, "go wash that off while I clean this mess up? 'K?" She absently nodded to his request before slowly raising out of bed, careful not to touch anything win the bloody tail blade. She numbly walked to the door of the room, which she assumed was a bathroom.

Her assumption was proven to be correct as she walked into a marvelous, white marble bathroom. She felt guilty as the water from the faucet splashed against her tail blade, the blood left pinkish-red stains on the bowl of the very expensive, marble sink. She sighed as she smudged the last crimson stain of the tail blade, she had a very good idea of what that thing actually was. Her tail blade was… unique or, at least, that's what Mom had always said to her.

The blade was shaped like an arrow; _Just like mom's_ , Nova thought as she turned the faucet of and swung her tail a few times, letting the blade cut through the air. However, the biggest difference between her and her Mom's blade was the interesting fact that, unlike Mom's, Nova's arrow was not on solid shape, it was like an anchor; with the curves coming out of the top, except hers were straight lines not curved.

 _Knock. Knock._

"Are you okay in there?" Durin asked, muffled by the door.

"I'm fine!" She called, "Just finishing up now!" She said as she blasted one last stream of water from the faucet in a one last futile attempt to clean the sink to no avail.

She sighed and opened the door for Durin, "I'm sorry, I couldn't - HOLY SHIIIIIIIIII-ooot?" She yelled upon seeing just how _much_ blood there actually was. The _entire_ side of his muzzle that was under the cut was crimson red with blood - _his_ blood.

Tears welled up in her eyes and blurred her visio, she threw herself around his neck causing him to take a step back in surprise. She buried her head in his shoulder, "I'm so-sorry!" She sobbed over again and again and again.

"Hey, hey, hey! It's okay, Nova." He wrapped her in his own hug and gave her a pat on the back. "It's fine, it's fine. I've had worse, you know?" He whispered reassurance softly into her ear as he started to slowly rock her back and forth.

They sat there for a couple minutes, hugging until Duin said, "Alright kiddo, let me clean this mess up and then we can go get breakfast or something." He slowly unwrapped himself from their hug and moved over to the sink, careful not to get blood all over the fall or on Nova.

 _Anymore blood,_ He shuddered recalling the image of Nova's blood stained tail blade, _And it'll be back to the flashbacks and night terrors._ He carefully picked any remaining scales that where barely hanging on off like cherries from a cherry tree…. Except it stung, just a little.

He flinched just a little bit as he pulled the first one off. "This is going to a looong day, isn't it?" He asked out loud, not really to anyone in particular. Nova giggled which caused a genuine smile to appear on his face. It might be a long day but at least he was in good company.

* * *

The Chronicler was the type of dragon that always intrigued and confused Malefor. One minute there happy and smiling, sending everybody happy looks and smiling and laughing. Then, they were frowning or staring off into the distance the next moment, as if recalling some bittersweet memory. Malefor noticed that the Chronicler seemed to get this face more often when he was around.

Other than that? The Chronicler was a… odd person. He was always doing something, off to a meeting or meditating, which gave him exactly zero time at all to talk to him. That changed when Malefor was taking a stroll through the garden just outside his house. The garden had a marvelous view of islands and an open sky, which made for particular beautiful sunsets. It was the best part of his home.

Well, it was Cynder's too… but she wasn't there anymore.

 _Gone without a trace,_ He thought as he watered the row of flowers in front of him, ever since Cynder's disappearance they had slowly been wilting away, despite his best effort to keep them healthy. The ones that laid in front of him were Cynder's pride and joy. The flowers had dark-almost black-colored petals that reminded him of that purply-black that can be seen in a clear night sky. The petals were arrayed in a similar pattern to roses. The middle of the flower -what was it again? Cynder knew, Cynder knew everything-had an eerie light purple light.

He chuckled recalling the long winded lecture Cynder gave him when he asked why they glowed. From the parts that he actually understood, he learned more about flowers than he ever did anywhere else. But staring at them now made his chest tighten and a bulge form in his throat.

Tears fell like raindrops from his eyes. "It's not fair!" He roared, raising to his hind legs before collapsing into a slouched position. "It's not fair," He sobbed, the watering can forgotten at his side. Why her? Why Cynder? Why his adorable, sweet, snarky, small, smart, little sister? Why not him? "Why? Why her?" He sobbed quietly to himself.

He just wanted to talk to her, to hug her, to joke with her, to play with her, to pull pranks on Eon together. He wanted to talk about the shadows that plagued his dreams and the incident at the "Wrong Spot" she would know what to say.

She always knew what to say.

Even if it was just one last time, he would tell her _everything_. Everything he ever wanted to say, everything he ever wanted to do, and everything he thought. He would tell her all of it.

"What's wrong, Malefor?" A gentle voice called to him. He turned and saw the Chronicler approaching with a curious look.

"I-I don't want your pity." He choked out between tears.

"Pity? I offer you no pity, Malefor." He said as sat by him. Malefor sent him a curious glance out of the corner of his eye, "I simply offer my sympathy and any help I can."

"You-you do?" Malefor's voice trembled, he didn't know what to think. He thought the Chronicler wouldn't even bat an eye ridge at his plight. Why would he? Surely he more important Time-keeping stuff to do...right?

"Yes. Believe it or not, but I have lost many friends and family as well." He spoke gently and with a small smile.

"Oh…. I-I'm sorry...is that why you became the Chronicler?" He asked. The Chronicler sat down next to him and looked out into the sky, alight with oranges and the other colors of the sunset.

"Ha! If only! No. No, I took the role of Chronicler because once I was offered it, duty and honor demanded I accept." He shook his head, a wishful glow in his eye, "Who knows? If I hadn't things may have turned out differently." He grew somber for a long time, making Malefor feel as though he brought up painful memories. "But, we are here to help you. Not talk about an old dragon's silly fantasies. WIth that said, care to explain why you are so upset?" He inquired turning to face Malefor.

"Don't you already know?" He sobbed. Everyone knew. _Everyone._

"Yes, but sometimes it's easy to understand someone's plight if it comes from that person and not a book." He replied turning back to the setting sun. "What a nice view. I take it you come here often?"

Malefor wiped the tears out of his eyes, it was nice to have someone to talk to who was serious about helping him with _out_ pitying him. "Y-Yeah, it was what Cynder used as leverage to get Eon to allow us to live here instead of the usual Skylander housing." He almost choked up again at the mere mention of Cynder. "Heh. She made such a big deal out of it, I think she wanted the house just for view and not the actual building." He had to admit, the view made him want the house too, the building being nice was just an added benefit. "Heh, I'm sure she would have wanted the house even if it was just an old, run down shack." He chuckled and to his surprise, The Chronicler did too.

"What is she like?" He asked carefully. _Is_. He had said _Is_. Not _was._ That made Malefor's spirits soar, if the Chronicler believed she was alive then she had to be!

For some reason this realisation made him feel a lot more comfortable now. An odd air of familiarity settled upon them, like the air two old friends had after being apart for awhile. "She was wonderful." He started, "She was never mean or rude without reason, always pointing out what was impractical and then how to fix it. She was always kind to those who were bullied or those to who couldn't defend themselves. Always jumping up to help. She was smart and kind-maybe not always _nice_ but she was _kind_." He laughed remembering her idea of knocking sense into him during his whole, "I'm-better-than-you" phase. He still had the bruises. "She always looked out for me and her friends. Ironic, isn't? I'm her big brother and when I was "watching over" her, she was looking out for me. I used to be a total jerk, only looking out for myself and being a total ass." He sent looked back at the Chronicler, expecting to see that judging look he always got when he talked about his past. But instead was surprised with a judge free, sympathetic look.

The surprise made him stumble over his words, "B-but she de-decided to have a little "chat" with me when it got out of hand. She told me how she had to run damage control after every interaction I had, how she barely spent anytime with friends because she was busy taking care of me." He choked, remembering the bitterness in his sister's voice as she spoke to him that day. "I-I ye-yelled at her and told her she was being stupid. She pointed out how I was acting and that only made me more frustrated. I… asked her why I couldn't have a bad day... " He choked remembering what she said next, "She yelled back, it was the first time she ever raised her voice, she said that everyday was bad for her. E-every day. She just snapped and told me that while I was off being a jerk she had to clean up every mess I made and when she had time away from me she was either bullied or overwhelmed with work because she was too busy taking care of my messes to take care of herself." He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to keep the tears from falling. He felt the Chronicler rest a claw on his shoulder but he shook him off.

"It's okay, young one. We all go through tough times. You don't have to say more if you don't want to." The Chronicler quietly spoke. As if he was too loud he would disturb something.

"No, no it's fine. I need to talk about this. Only me and Cynder know what happens next." He took a deep breath before resuming his story. Funny, he hadn't even realise he was telling it. "I told her that I didn't care and that I didn't need her to take care of me. I told her-I-I told her that I didn't care about her at all and she didn't matter at all to me." He couldn't suppress the few choked sobs that escaped his mouth as he recalled her reaction. "She-she just stood there shocked for a few seconds and I-I had just realised what I said an-and when I reached out to apologise she screamed at me to shut up and sliced me with her tail blade before running off." He wiped more tears out his eyes before continuing. "I didn't see her for days and figured she ran off. Not that I cared at the time, but eventually it came back to bite me as she stopped doing damage control, stopped apologizing for me, stopped leaving food out when I didn't return until late at night. I figured it wasn't that big of a deal and tried to cook my own food. Heh, Gill Grunt had to pull me out of the fire." He allowed himself to laugh a little, "Gill _thanked_ me for not only starting a fire to test his new(now old) water cannon on but also because he was wanting to remodel the kitchen anyway. That night I stayed up, hungry, wanting to see just where Cynder was. I don't know why but after awhile I decided to check the garden. And there she was." He felt his chest tighten as he remembered how he found Cynder. "I hadn't realised just _how_ much I actually cared about her until I saw her. She was asleep, surrounded by books and papers, and-and she was so _thin_." He choked on the last word.

"She was so busy catching up on work she missed and current work that she had forgotten to eat. Or so I thought. But when I woke her up she started apologizing and crying. She said she had been a horrible sister and was sorry. I-I remember being so shocked that I couldn't respond. After that I got better, still was a horrible excuse for a dragon, but I got better." He sighed, remembering those days with shame, "It all came to head when I discovered she _was_ actually being bullied. I beat them so much that they almost died. Cynder was quiet for the rest of the day, until we got back from that day's school and I from detention. She challenged me to a duel and I-being an arrogant idiot- accepted." He laughed to himself as he recalled the beating he got from her. "When we started sparing she started talking. She said that wasn't going to stop fighting me until I changed. I laughed and said she was wrong." He sighed, "She beat me."

The Chronicler _chuckled_ , "It seems you deserved that one."

"Yeah, yeah. I did." He admitted sheepishly. Finally, he noticed how talking to the old dragon made him comfortable, like he could tell this old dragon anything and he would help if needed. He sighed as the joyful mood slowly died, "I miss her."

The Chronicler put a claw on his shoulder, "Well, she seems like quite the dragon. Now I'm here to help you in more than just the emotional way. I wanted to know if you know anything the others didn't about her disappearance and this "Wrong Spot"?" He asked.

Malefore debated his options, he could tell the Chronicler about his theory and the weird shadow tentacle, or he could deny it. "Ye-yeah. I think I do. I think the "Wrong Spot" is somehow connected to her. I was investigating it the night I ran into you, when this dark tendril reached out of the shadow and tried reach for me. It kept whispering things like if I joined it I would be able to save Cynder." He admitted.

The Chronicler's face became serious and focused. A book glided out of his bag (Why hadn't Malefore noticed that?) and opened to around the first quarter of the length by _itself_. Malefore suddenly was very aware that he was alone with the _Keeper of Time_ and became very interested in the surrounding flowers and bushes. There were roses, dandelions, daisies, and other flowers; the bushes were all the same height and made up the border of the garden by surrounding the circle of flowers. The Chronicler's grip on his shoulder tighten, how had he forgot it was there?

Malefore gasped in shock and surprised when the Chronicler's book floated in front of him. One of the pages had a picture of a humanoid figure covered from head to toe in a long, shadowy cloak that covered everything but the hands. Which were encased in silver gauntlets and held a sword. The other page showed a pool of what looked like liquid shadow and had a shadowy, skeleton hand reaching out of it. "Is this what you saw?"

"Y-yes." He stuttered surprised by the Chronicler's abruptness.

The Chronicler let out a heavy sigh which conveyed just how old he really was before determination took over his features, "These are wraiths. Then your sister is in a lot of trouble and if we are to save your sister, then we need the one being who has ever slayed one. We need Durin."

* * *

 **And Lot's of things happening (not really) and not that much to talk about. This is longer than usaul because I really wanted to tell the story about Malefore and Cynder. I also learned that I've been spelling Malefore wrong the entire time! YAY!**

 **In all seriousness not that much to talk about so hope you've enjoyed.**

 **Fly high and long my little Dragonets,**

 **-Dragon**


	10. Chapter 10: Slave

Chapter 10: Slave

The dark brown, mahogany doors of the Skylander Academy Library shut close with a massive _bang!_ Malefore had heard it from his secluded corner, it had momentarily distracted him from his book. He sighed as he returned to his book _Guess I'm in this for the long run now._ He thought to himself as he flipped a page, he recalled how many nights Cynder "disappeared" only to be found sleeping at a desk in the library long after it closed. _How the tables have turned, huh sis?_

He placed the book down with sigh, despite the library being closed the lights, for whatever reason, were still on. Malefore thought that the massive library would have _something_ on Durin or these Wraiths. Yet despite the fact that it had its _own_ island and was _bigger_ than the Academy, no a single book he read so far had even _used_ the name Durin or mentioned Wraiths.

Well… there _was_ the series Cynder and Stealth Elf were always ogling over. But surely the dragon who killed a Wraith wasn't an _author_ … right?

Malefore hadn't _really_ read the any of those books. Sure, he read one or two, but he hadn't really "read" them. _Still,_ Malefore admitted to himself, _those were good. Even if I read the "worst" ones._ He laughed to himself as he remembered Cynder's reaction to finding him reading one of Durin's books, even if it was one of the worst ones in her opinion. The massive bookshelves that surrounded him reached the ceiling of the massive building, their frames made out of thick, brown wood. He paced around his desk as he thought back to the Chronicler's rather _rushed_ explanation of the Wraiths and of who Durin was.

 _You will know him when you see him. Look for dragon who's scales have been bleached of their color._

Did this Durin bleach his scales? No, that didn't add up with what he said next.

 _Do not try to pry too deep into it or his history. You will not glean the truth from him. He plays by the old rules. The way you played by before I was Chronicler._

When Malefore asked what did he mean by "Plays by the old rules" the answer was something he did not expect.

 _You fight and live with the reassurance that the Skylanders always have your back. That you always had a home to come home to. Durin was raised in a different world. He learned the hard way that once you left your home; there was a high chance of not coming back. He learned that you keep your secrets to yourself or pay the price. He plays by the only rule of the world that never changes: If you play, play for keeps._

What did he mean "Play for keeps"? Malefore had studied almost all the history books available and never learned of a time when the way the Chronicler had explained ever represented how people lived. But his next statement is what made Malefore's chest tighten and fill him with a feeling he had to poke and prod before he realised what it was.

Fear.

 _He has survived the Darkest of Shadows. He has risen to see the dawn of every new day. And he will continue to do so, no matter who tries to snuff him out. He is soulless. And he's experienced things we could never even_ begin _to comprehend. And he knows things that even I do not know. But that's not why he's unbeatable._

Those things alone made Malefore… _nervous_ of meeting him, per say. But the last word the Chronicler said on the matter of Durin before telling him to find anything on the Wraiths and what the world knows of Durin before rushing to the spot touched by the Wraiths.

 _The reason he is unbeatable , despite everything that happened to him and everything the_ world _owes him, is simple. The reason he is the "Boogeyman" of all the new "Dark Masters " and "Dark lords" is one only few know. He met Spyro the Dragon, recorded his tale, and gave his word. He gave his word to Spyro. He gave his word that he could count on him, whether he be recognised, damned, or unknown, that Skylands would be protected. He gave his word to Spyro that he would have the_ Final _say in Skylands fate._

 _No matter who protected it or who seeked it's destruction._

Those words had shaken Malefore. How had Durin met _Spyro_ of all dragons? Why hadn't Durin been known to him before? Why hadn't he helped Skylands when the Skylanders where scattered across a different universe? Why hadn't he helped with every villain they fought? Malefore had tried to ask the Chronicler but when he asked why hadn't he helped them the Chronicler had called over his shoulder, "He didn't need to."

Had Durin knew things that they didn't? Why didn't he share them? Why did he work in the shadows?

 _Because he's the Soulless!_ The revelation hit him like a truck, causing Malefore to stop mid step and stumble over his own feet. The fear in his gut almost tripled at the aspect of such a (probably _very_ ) powerful Dragon being their only hope...and the subject of one of history's most twisted and evil myths. He felt his legs move on their own as he struggled to process this. His distantly felt the carpet underneath his feet as he ran.

After turning down aisles of books and running up a winding staircase, his feet stopped in front of a small, ancient-looking, bookcase that had only a single row of books. Cobwebs decorated the other shelves and the lighting made it seem like light _avoided_ the books. He gingerly slid his claw against the old, leather spines of the books that rested on this abandon shelf. Finally, just before the last book, he found what he was looking for.

A fat, dusty, worn, old, deep green book, it was the fattest book he'd ever seen. He pulled on the book, but it didn't move. So he pulled again, it still was unmoving. So he pulled again and again, each time slightly stronger. Until, when his patience was dry and his temper soaring, he pulled with a final surge of effort. With a _pop!_ The book came out of the shelf, Malefore was sent tumbling as he may have put just a _little_ too much effort into his last pull. He let loose a loud, triumphant roar but quickly cut it off when he realised the Library was closed and he wasn't supposed to be there. He look down at the dusty, leather book in his hands. He wiped the dust of the title so he could read it; it read:

 _Lies to the Truth: Dissecting the Myths and Legends of Skylands._

As he looked peered over the side and saw the size of the _stack_ of paper kept between both covers he winced. A lot of information to shuffle through, a lot of pages to flip to before coming to anything important.

"I'm going to be here a long, _long_ time. Aren't I, sis?" He groaned, he could practically here Cynder's giggling on the faint edges of his hearing range.

 _Maybe you should read more interesting and informational things, instead of the crap you always read._ An echo of Cynder's voice bounced around his brain.

In that moment, he vowed to do whatever he could to see his little sister home and safe. And if that meant making a deal with the devil?

It's not like he had anything else to lose.

* * *

"Nova. No." Durin warned taking a step closer.

 _Nova, yes._

She just gave him an innocent smile as she slowly shifted closer to the door. ""Kloveyoubye!" She dashed out of the room and into the hall, before Durin could react. She ran as fast her legs could carry her and rounded a corner, eager to get out of range of Durin's gravity magic. She paused to catch her breath, stopping just after turning a corner.

She cautiously peeked around the corner of the hall and was surprised, and mildly revived, to see that Durin was _not_ following her. She backed up slowly, a feeling of suspicion crawled up her bones. Something was off. She slowly turned around, casting one last glance over her shoulder.

Still nothing.

She shrugged lightly, _Oh well. More for me._ She thought happily. It was time to go raid a cafeteria full of cookies and of every other type of surgery treat she could think of! Cakes, cupcakes, cookies, brownies, ice cream, and - and where was the cafeteria?

 _Where_ is _the cafeteria?_ Nova froze. _That's going to be an issue._ She weighed her options, on one talon she _could_ go back and ask Durin where to go. On the other, however, she _could_ , theoretically, go search for it herself and, maybe, get "lost" on the way there.

She snickered as she made her way further down the hall. Oh, this was going to be fun.

"So Nova, where are going?" Durin said from right behind her.

Or not.

* * *

Cynder's eyes slowly opened, and for the first time weren't met by darkness. But by a sword. "Welp, that's one way to wake up!" She chuckled nervously, fully awake and leaning away from the blade. She shifted her gaze up to take in the full appearance of the figure and gasped. He-no _it-_ was a massive figure, dressed in black robes and hood. It was taller than her on her hind legs!(Granted she was only seven feet- but her point still stands!) Her eyes nervously shot left and right, taking in her surroundings. She was on a ship that looked like it was docked, there were crates and… and _cages_. The cages were had _people_ in them. People of different races, moles, goblins, sharks. They were all there.

But she was the only dragon.

Aside from that, there were people, also of all races(she was still the only dragon), walking around the deck looking at all the captives.

 _Slavers._ She growled to herself, _They're lucky I'm tied up._ She anxiously thumped her tail, despite the blade being tied down. _They certainly took a lot of precautions._ Even her muzzle was tied shut! Didn't they know about element nullifiers? Wait… if there wasn't a nullifier than she could dip into the shadows and make her escape! But how to do it without alerting the Guard in front of her.

Or cutting her throat on the sword. That would be bad. Very, very bad. Cynder looked down with her eyes, trying hard not to move her head, her search for an element blocker was interrupted by a gasp when she saw her scales. Gone was the purple-pink and magenta colors, they had been replaced by obsidian black scales and pink-red underbelly. She wasn't allowed to properly react, however, because the sword's tip was pressed harder against her throat; she whimpered as a trickle of blood ran down the side of her neck.

 _Quiet._ It hissed, it's voice was unnatural. It sounded like a whisper that was twisted then amplified. It sounded sinister and it reminded her of a snake, or one of those crappy demons in one of Stealth Elf's fantasy movies. It pulled the blade back enough that she was able to breathe but was still close enough that if she moved it would cut into her throat. She desperately thought of a way to escape, but came up with one horrible realization.

Make a desperate bid to escape by using her zap breath once they took off the rope or be damned to slavery until she could find a better way to escape. Two really bad options in her opinion. The bad option was to try to escape now; she had no way to even get out of the bindings around her muzzle. Which left her with one option, the worst one in her opinion, wait until a better opportunity.

But sometimes. They only options you have are bad. _And then you have to pick the best one._ Cynder recalled one of the lessons her mentor drilled and drilled into her head. She took in a deep breath and pushed all the fear she previously had deep down, where it could be ignored, for now. As there was nothing she could do she settled for observing her surroundings, the ones she could see anyway. There deck of the ship was wide, able to hold the crowds of what looked like hundreds and tens of cages. Something that caught her eye was the fact that, despite how many people there were, there were very few of the cloaked creatures that seemed to running the show.

Cynder counted only ten of them. Each strategically placed so that if anyone were to cause a ruckus, or an escape attempt, they would be able to interfere quickly and almost immediately. Cynder had to hand it to them. They were good at this whole thing. _Well, I guess there's only one thing left to do now._ She thought grumply. _Wait it out._

After what felt like hours of awkward waiting, a small, stout, humanoid figure walked up to the guard in front of her. "How much for this one?" the figure asked in a gruff voice. The guard only slowly turned to face it. Cynder on the other hand, was internally panicking. She was being _sold_ for money like some lifeless object. While she knew it was coming, it was definitely different than just thinking about it. She didn't hear the guards reply but she saw the figure hand the guard a small bag, of what she assumed was gold. The guard pulled her forward and collapsed against the wooden floor with a muffled _oof!_ The side of her head was humming from pain as she was gingerly pulled to her feet.

"Come on, lass. None of that now." He said… almost gently as he helped her up. "Now come on." He said, his face was close to her face, too close for her, "Don't do anything stupid, lass. We'll come back later." He whispered, winking a green eye.

… _.What? Is he a friend? Why does his voice sound so familiar?_ She thought as she allowed herself to be pulled along. She almost fell over multiple times as they exited the boat, both from people abbing her and because it was kind of hard to walk WHEN YOUR LIMBS WERE BOUND TOGETHER.

Thankfully, her front legs and back legs were not all bound together by the itchy ropes, but were bound separately. She had to hop to move across the planks of the ship and know the gravel of the path that lead from the ship into Spyro knows where. She wouldn't try to escape...not yet. She was sudden;y shoved to the side and fell to the ground with a _thump!_ She groaned in pain, her head throbbed like someone had hit it with a hammer - _repeatedly_. "Stupid slave." A person hissed as they walked past.

 _How dare they!_ She thought, enraged, _I'm not anyone's...slave._ But she _was_.

The crushing the realisation hit her _hard_. She _was_ a slave. She wasn't Cynder the Skylander, someone respect and feared. No. No, here she was Cynder the _Slave_. She gulped in fear as the figure once again pulled her to her feat. After a while of walking they entered one of the greenest forest she had ever seen. The trees were tall and old looking, but their leafs were a bright, shining green. She stared in complete, all encompassing wonder at the trees. Forgetting to move along with her… _owner_. She felt the rope tug her to the _side_ instead of the front. She was so surprised by the strength and direction that she was caught unaware and was sent sprawling into the bushes off to the side of the path.

She grunted in pain as the branches of the bushes tore at her freshly color changed scales. She landed on the grass behind the bushes with a grunt. "Hold on, lass. Let's get you out of these ropes, shall we?" The figure said as he pulled out a knife. His words caught her completely off guard. So much in fact, that when all her limbs were free and the rope around her muzzle was gone… she _didn't_ do anything.

"Who are you?" She asked once she finally regained her bearings. The figure just chuckled warmly at her and offered her a helping hand up. She gingerly accepted the hand with caution. "Why are you doing this?" She asked carefully.

"Hmph." He grunted, "Don't ya remember me? I'm Dale!" He barked. She winced out his volume, he really was loud wasn't that quite, was he? "Oh, it must be the look! You see that whole mole thing was a designs. In reality, I'm Dale Forgemaker, Lord of the Golden Halls, and the last Dwarf alive." He boosted proudly, "And as for why? Well, you've saved me many times, so I thought I would return the favor! Besides I know a guy who wants you alive almost as badly as the Skylanders!"

"I-I... _Dwarf_?" She asked insoundensly. But they were all gone! That itch she could whenever she started thinking about Dragon's Fang or when she was reading Durin's Interpretation of the Legend of Spyro returned. He was speaking the truth, she knew it in her bones-but she DIDN'T! She never met a dwarf or saved one before! But that name. Dale. Dale. _Dale._

"Dale," She said softly. It sounded right as it flowed off her tongue, why hadn't it before? "Dale," She whispered again. "I don't know you. But if I did… I think someone's been tampering with my memory.?" She said slowly. A distant part of her mind realised she probably just started another adventure. She could already feel the headache.

* * *

He simply laughed. It was good to see her how she was supposed to be, not that ugly pink-purple. to mention how warm it made him feel inside when she said his name. She wasn't even shouting! "Oh, Cynder." He laughed as he wrapped an arm around her neck; she froze at the contact, he couldn't really blame her. "You have _no_ idea, lass."

* * *

 **I'm Back! Yay! I'm so happy I got to properly introduce Dale. He's so fun to write. But Yes, major things are happening. Durin gets to Skyland Academy, Ignitus is doing vague Chronicler things, Malefor has to search through a huge book, and Nova want's sweets. If it wasn't clear(which wasn't, my bad) Cynder looked like how she looks in Skylanders up until now. When she clearly got her old colors back. Sorry if I wasn't clear about that. Yes, that has effect on the plot and on her. I can't wait for when Dale and Durin meet, that's going to be awesome. Also, yes, Dale has a scottish accent, why? Because he can.**

 **Fly High and Long, My little Dragonets!**

 **-Dragon.**


	11. Chapter 11: Arrival

Chapter 11: Arrival

Durin had issues. He was aware of that. Between PTSD, paranoia, being antisocial, distancing himself from society, and not taking proper care of himself, he was well aware that he had some "issues". Not that he could really bring himself to care enough to do anything. _I'm still breathing_ and _am living a life as a successful author - isn't that enough?_ He thought to himself as he examined the cut on his muzzle once again. The cut wasn't as deep as it looked, thankfully. It would leave a scar, but that didn't really matter to him.

Nothing really did.

 _It matters to Nova,_ the thought floated across his train of thought as he poked and prodded the loose scales, seeing which ones that needed to be pulled off and which ones wouldn't. He didn't flinch from the pain, it was just another thing he couldn't bring himself to care about. In fact, he relished it. Not the pain, no, but the distraction it brought him. The ability to focus on something other than his new "job" and the... _responsibilities_ that came with it.

He steered his thoughts away from that line of thought, he didn't like thinking about the future - it didn't matter to much to him, and towards Nova. His small smile became slightly larger as he recalled her reaction to him appearing out of nowhere. She asked how he did it and he gave his standard response (albeit more smug than usual) "magic." And while most people called bullshit, he _was_ being honest. Simple teleportation magic that required him to know the precise time and location it would be when he appeared or he could be lost in the time stream and appear anywhere from two seconds later to the beginning of time.

 _Maybe it isn't that simple,_ He mused. _Whelp, live and learn._ He tuned out the rumbling of the engine that reminded him of the all too familiar charge of mounted animals. Nova had longed sense disappeared, intent on exploring every inch of the airship. Which was fine by him, as long as she didn't pull any _stunts_ again. Yes, it had been a few days but still. He couldn't help but worry.

He started towards the dining hall at leisure pace, _Besides, it's not like anything bad can happen._ As he turned the corner he saw a glowing golden and yellow dragon sitting next to an armored dwarf out of the corner of his eye. He whipped around to see them, hope blossomed in his chest… but nobody was there.

The ghosts had disappeared by the time his vision was fully set on their spot. He heard a faint laugh on the edge of his hearing. _No, nonononononononononononononononono. Leave me alone!_ He backed away in fear as the laughter turned into a primal cry of pain and agony, mixed with a sinister, joyful laugh.

He ran back into his room and slammed the wooden door against its frame, _hard_. The screaming and the laugher only grew louder, drawing closer and closer, coming through the walls and the door; he fell against the door, the sound of his back hitting the door echoed through the room. Bouncing off of the walls, only adding to the growing cacophony of laughter and screams. He wrapped his wings around his body in an attempt to block out the raising noise. He covered his head with his talons but the noise continued to grow.

And it grew.

And it grew.

 _Help me…. Anyone…. Please…. Help me_.

 _...Durin…_

The voice was quiet and sounded far away, but he was able to hear it over all the noise.

 _Get up._

The voice grew closer.

 _You can beat this._

 _Get up._

It was closer now. Close enough that it sounded like the speaker was in front of them. He slowly lifted his head up, just enough that he could see over the tips of his wings. His blood froze in shock and his cold beating heart filled with hope. He couldn't believe it, somebody came! Somebody came! His heart beat faster and faster, hope flooded through him. He peeked his eyes over his wings, desperately trying to ignore how the noise increased as he did so.

Time froze. All the emotions flooding through him stopped. He opened his mouth to speak but the words refused to come, even as a jumble of words or noises.

" _Get up off your ass…"_ The pulse dragon's ghost spoke gently, " _...and win."_

Somebody came.

Her transparent silhouette was outlined and amplified by the light pouring into the room through the windows. The light made her wing symbols glow even more and the light blurred her figure's edges making the edges around her head glow like a halo. The pulse dragon smiled gently, and all the noise stopped.

And then, just as quickly as she appeared, she was gone.

After of few minutes of blissful silence Durin rose to his feet. They would be arriving at the Academy in a few hours and he needed to prepare some things…. And find Nova, now that he thought about it. Yes, he definitely needed to find Nova.

* * *

Flame took a deep breath. The new teacher would be arriving in half a hour and everything that could have gone wrong… well not _everything_ went wrong, a lot had though. Cynder went missing, most of the Guardians couldn't be there (they were off doing Spyro knows what), the Chronicler was smiling smugly to himself as he patiently awaited for the teacher's arrival, and Eon was…. Somewhere.

Flame looked around dock and, to his surprise, noticed that Malefor wasn't there. For a second he briefly wondered if nobody had told him before quickly wiping the thought from his mind. Malefor probably didn't care or had trapped himself somewhere with a lot forbidden magic books…. _again_. Flame sighed, Malefor had a _morbid_ interest in forbidden magic; specifically dark magic. Not the type you get a slap on the wrist for, but the type you can get _killed_ or persecuted for!

It took lots of begging from Malefor _and_ Cynder for him to promise to keep it a secret. Cynder had also pulled a lot of strings to make sure the books were untraceable, which meant he was the only loose end. And it was getting out of hand, sort of. Unless he had something better to Malefor was either "training" (aka crushing the hopes and dreams of aspiring Skylanders who thought they could fight him) or his nose was buried in those books…. or he was keeping an eye on Cynder or saving the world-maybe he didn't read them _that_ much but he still read them.

Which was more than enough for Flame's instincts to urge him to tell someone else. Flame sent one last sweeping gaze over the dock and noticed that Eon had arrived and was talking to the Chronicler, they were speaking in hushed tones; the parts he had heard he couldn't understand, but the tone made obvious that it was something very hush-hush.

Flame spotted a group of tourists staring at them with awed expressions. He became very self aware of the living legends just sitting around on a dock. He gave them a large smile and a wave, one of the children flipped out and started talking to their mother with a face splitting grin. He chuckled to himself as he turned away and towards Jet-Vac and Stealth Elf.

Jet-Vac was trying to wake up a sleeping Stealth Elf when he spotted the approaching dragon. "Ah, morning, Flame. It seems Elf here was up all night reading that book of hers. Do we have any idea where Cynder might be? Or if we have any clues to her whereabouts?" The Skylander started using Elf as an armrest, sandwiching her head between the top of a post and his elbow.

Flame raised an eye ridge at the weird behavior only to drop it when Jet-Vac waved it off. "Do you have any idea where Malefor is?" Flame asked, "I kind of need him to be here to welcome the new teacher."

Jet-Vac shrugged, "No, I would check the library. Who's the teacher?"

Flame nodded to show his appreciation, "A dragon named Durin. Apparently he's the new cartography teacher. Thanks for the tip." He walked towards the library with a hint of indignity and irrational. Malefor was definitely going to get an earful.

* * *

Malefor's nose scrunched up in his sleep as a smell filled his dream.

 _What is that? It smells a lot like...like_

"FIRE!" He shouted as he sprung up and away his chair, now fully awake. "Wait…" there was no fire. But that didn't make sense! What smelled like fire?

"Heya kid." Malefor spun to face the voice. He gasped and stumbled back, his scales had become considerably paler than before. "Don't you know how to greet someone properly? Reach out and shake my hand." The black dragon held out one of its paws expectantly.

Malefor took one last look at the dragon, with its jet black scales and red eyes. Malefor hesitantly reached out and grabbed its-

 _Frrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrt._

The sound of air leaving the whoopie cushion was the only thing Malefor's brain could render before the black dragon broke down into laughter. "Oh my ancestors! The ole whoopie cushion in the hand trick! That skeleton was right - it never gets old!" The black dragon laughed. He wrapped a wing around Malefor, which brought him back to the present.

He jumped back into a battle position, "Who are you? How did you get here?" He growled, but was surprised when the dragon rolled his eyes like this some kind of joke to him. Irritation and indignity flared through him as the thought of anyone not taking him seriously. "I'm Malefor the greatest-"

"Yes, yes. Your name is Malefor blah blah blah bunch of fancy titles. My name's Oryps." He looked over the books at Malefor's desk. Suddenly feeling very embarrassed he threw himself in front of the books. "Hey! I meant no harm. Just wanted to know you were reading." Oryps leaned his head around Malefor's poor attempt to stop him. "Myths, huh. Didn't peg you for that type of guy. What did that for? And that's a documentary styled book, that's not what I would call 'light reading' but whatever floats your boat. Unless…" Malefor shifted, he was getting uncomfortably close to his purpose.

"...Unless, your trying to find out information about the Wraiths! Well, you've stumbled into the right dragon!" He boasted dramatically. "Heh. On a serious note, what to you want to know?"

"Wait, really?" Malefor exclaimed, his hopes soared, his previous irritation gone. "Well-uhhhhh- how do you kill one?" He was taken back by Oryps, sure, but that didn't mean he wouldn't use this god-send of a dragon's knowledge.

Opryps paused for a moment, pondering the question. "You need an enchanted blade. Now, you can 'kill' them normally but the don't stay dead. You need an enchanted blade to permanently kill them, specifically one capable of destroying(or banishing) souls." His tone had change, from a carefree and laid back one to a more wizened and experienced one. The dragon dragged one of his claws along the desk, creating a scraping sound that filled their corner of the library.

"Only three blades are capable of killing Wraiths." He said, "One, the blade of _the_ king of the Dwarves, Dragon's Fang, a blade wielded by Spyro himself. Two, the blade wielded by the Leader of the Prime Guard, Vampris, Hope's Stand In. And finally, three, Seraphim's Guide." He interrupted his list with a sigh. He paused for a few moments to let Malefor sink in the information. The way he had mention the final one made Malefor wonder i he had any experience with it. It sounded like he did but it sounded bad and good, it reminded him of the Chronicler; the way that the dragon acted young but hid a troubled and experienced past behind the façade.

"Wait! Dragon's Fang? We have a piece of it. Maybe we could-" Malefor started but stopped when Oryps held his paw in a 'stop' motion. Oryps had turned back to him and was considering him with a thoughtful expression.

Orpys shook his head, "Were it so easy I would have done it myself. Dragon's Fang has, obviously, been shattered and while the spell remains of the blade it won't work unless we have _all_ the pieces. Pieces, it seems, that have been lost to history, and before you ask you cannot reverse forge a dagger or some other type of weapon with it for two main reasons. One, it requires a special forge and fire, both of which have been lost for _centuries_ at this point. Two, only the one who forged it and the one who it was intended for can wield it to its fullest potential." He sighed, "As for the others? I do not know where Seraphim's Guide lays or its user as it has the same enchantment as Dragon's Fang. No, our only option is Hope's Stand In." He turned in the general direction of the door. "But that is a subject for later. Now come on, we have to welcome the new teacher. Don't wanna get on their bad side… or do we?" He muttered the last part to himself.

"Wait! Before we go, do you know where Hope's Stand In even is?" Malefor asked as he jogged to catch up to his new friend as they exited the library.

"I recently got a tip that could _point_ us in the right direction."

* * *

Nova had been watching the Academy grow closer and closer as soon as it came into view. The rest of the passengers were doing last minute packing as the ship drew closer to the dock. Nova shifted her shoulders slightly, one of her mother's swords, Hope's Stand In, rested on her back and she was still getting use to it and the worn leather sheath sitting on her back.

Durin had given it to her just before the Academy had appeared over the horizon. Saying that she was going to start training soon and might as well get used to it. She had asked why as she still had exactly eleven months and four days before she became a Skylander-in-training. He had replied saying that didn't mean she shouldn't start training now.

He had kept the other one, a normal "pulse sword"; a sword the Pulse Dragons could use to channel their Pulses into the blade to either have a lightning sword or…. Well actually she didn't know what else it did. Durin had also kept the Arkeanstone. She didn't know why but she had an odd feeling about it, it looked unnatural, it felt like soft glass when touched, and Durin refused to unwrap it for more than a few seconds unattended.

She asked and he went full lecture mode on her. Something about rare stones and thieves.

 _Pop!_

Durin appeared right next to her. Scaring her out of her thoughts and generally freaking her out. "HOLY SHII...ot?" She corrected herself, Durin shrugged. He didn't care. Her nerves started to calm when she remembered what he just did. "Wait, no, I'm mad at you! You can't just keep appearing wherever you want! It's rude! Also why was there a pop this time?" She settled for glaring after saying her bit.

"There was a pop because I wanted one to be. Also, you look adorable when your glaring." He said, "Or, at the very least, are trying to." He chuckled at her as she just put more power behind the glare in response. "Cheer up, little Supernova, we're here."

Nova turned and was surprised to see that they were actually there. Before Durin could stop her she dashed down the ramp and- "Oof!" she collided with another dragon. Because of course she did.

"Hmm. Dragons colliding with me is becoming a usual event now I see." She hurriedly backed up, bowed her head, and offered as many apologizes as she could as fast as she could. "Now, now, It's fine, it happens more than you would think." She lifted her head at the odd comment and gasped.

 _The Chronicler._

 _I_ ran _head first into the_ Chronicler _!_

 _Of course I did._

She felt heat rise in his cheeks as she backed up a few more steps in respect, "I'm so sorry! I didn't know you were there and I-"

The Chronicler laughed, "I thought I told you already, that's not necessarily. What's your name young one?" He asked, his voice was soothing and calming to Nova's jumping nerves.

"Oh! My name? It's Nova." She was suddenly aware that Master Eon's eyes, Stealth Elf, Jet-Vac, a fire dragon, and Malefor's eyes were on her. "He-he. Hi…"

"Chronicler," Everyone turned to the new voice. Nova's nerves calmed down immensely when she saw Durin. "...It's been awhile."

"Indeed it has." Their tones were different. The Chronicler's soothing tone had been replaced by a more solemn and relieved; similarly, Durin's causal, nonchalant, care-free tone had been replaced by a quiet, respectful, and...gladness?

Nova had very little time to ponder as both dragons moved closer to each other, she took a step back to not get squished between them. A smile transpired between them and Nova got a feeling there was much, _much_ , deeper story to this.

Durin turned to the rest of the gathered Skylanders, the dock was empty by now. "Hello, my name's Durin. I'm your new cartography teacher and this is my adopted daughter, Nova." She smiled and gave an awkward wave.

Eon stepped forward to say something but Malefor beat him to it. "I'm Malefor and let me be the first Skylander to welcome you." He extended his hand which Durin took and gave him a nod. "Behind me are Skylanders Jet-Vac and Stealth Elf," He motioned to them who each gave him a nod. "And hot-head over there is the new Guardian of Fire, Flame." At this point Eon stepped up and extended his own hand.

"It is good to have you back here, even if your not a Skylander." Durin took his hand and shook it as well. He didn't nod this time. "Come, let me show you to your office. Everyone else you are dismissed." Eon instructed and everyone started to go their separate ways.

Durin leaned back a little, "Nova, go talk to Malefor. I think you might like him." He winked and followed Eon towards the massive building of the Academy.

Nova shot him a smile and took in the Academy. The main building was a huge cathedral type building with a bunch of bridges, towards the top of the building, branching out to connect small towers on their own small islands. She was so absorbed in the view that she didn't notice the Chronicler come up behind her. "Come now, Nova. I think your father is right when he says you might like Malefor." He motioned her to follow him and she did do, albeit a bit hesitant.

Anxiety twisted her gut and pulled at her nerves. What if he ddin't like her? What if she wasn't good enough? Whatifwhatifwhatif- "Calm down, young one. He couldn't hurt a youngling even if he tried. He has too big of a heart." The Chronicler reassured her, well aware of the irony, and led the way to the purple dragon.

Unaware of red eyes trailing his leaving form before they tunrned to Durin's shrinking form "What are you up to now, O'brother mine?" Oryps chuckled to himself as he started off in the direction of Durin. "And where's our little Pulse Dragon friend, Vampris?"

* * *

 **Plot twist! Hehe. I was meaning to do this for awhile now. So I've had massive writer's block which is why this has taken so long. And if this chapter seems all over the place that's because it is. I couldn't really wait to have them arrive as I needed that to happen now so I could move the plot forward.**

 **And yes, Nova now uses Hope's Stand In. So the question is now 'How did Durin kill a Wraith?' Answer is spoilers wait a bit more. The Wraiths have been explained more and there was no Dale and Cynder because this is a really big chapter.**

 **I also want to give htffan951 for the support and advice you've given me. As well as everyone else who has read or reviewed this story.**

 **Fly High and Long, my little Dragonets,**

 **Dragon.**


	12. Annocement: Sorry

**So where to start?**

 **This story is currently going under a revision. Entirely. Because I didn't like where I had taken the story, or what I had down with the characters, or the fact that Durin was basically a McGuffin that could solve anything. However, this story is not canceled. Just being completely rewritten. Same name, Same characters, and same base plot. Keyword** ** _base_** **plot. I already have a few ideas and a** ** _lot_** **of things are going to be different. The revision (once done) is going to feel more like a different story with the same name, characters, and plot more than anything. But I'm positive it will be better. Also for those who are wondering if Durin is Spyro... I can't answer that, but spell Oryps backwards and you get half of his real name. The other half is obvious if you know what his character in Skylander Academy looks like (cough, he's not just** ** _him_** **, he's** ** _darker_** **cough cough.)**

 **All of my other stories that I haven't updated in months will not be rewritten but before I start TFBTG again I will post a few chapter in Wings of Purple and Steel. So yeah, that's coming up soon...**

 **Fly high and long, my little dragonets.**

 **\- Dragon.**


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